UK top for online drug sales in Europe
UK-based drug dealers earn more money online than any of their European rivals, research suggests.
In January, British dealers made $2.2m (£1.7m) in web sales, with a 16% share of the global online drugs market.
However, US dealers had a 36% share of the online market and took home $5m (£3.8m).
Commissioned by the Netherlands government, research company Rand Europe trawled the eight largest drug marketplaces on the dark web.
These online shopping sites can be accessed only using a specialised web browser, and do not show up in mainstream search engine results.
Rand Europe found the number of drug deals taking place on the dark web had tripled since 2013, when police in the US closed Silk Road – one of the first online drugs marketplaces.
Biggest earners
Online drug market share in January
- United States – 35.9%
- United Kingdom – 16.1%
- Australia – 10.6%
- Germany – 8.4%
- Netherlands – 7.8%