Iranian National Indicted for Running Dark Web Drug Marketplace Linked to 400,000 Orders, Including Fentanyl
The A federal grand jury has indicted Behrouz Parsarad, 36, of Tehran, Iran, for his role as the alleged founder and operator of Nemesis Market, a sprawling darknet marketplace accused of facilitating the sale of fentanyl, other illegal drugs, and a range of cybercrime services. The indictment follows a years-long investigation and international takedown of the platform, which processed over 400,000 illicit transactions from 2021 to 2024.
Launched in March 2021, Nemesis Market grew to host over 150,000 users and more than 1,100 vendor accounts worldwide, prosecutors say. The indictment outlines how the site served as a one-stop shop for drugs, stolen financial information, counterfeit currencies, fake identification documents, and malware. Of the hundreds of thousands of transactions, more than 55,000 involved stimulants such as methamphetamine and cocaine, while over 17,000 involved opioids—including heroin, oxycodone, and fentanyl.
Laboratory testing confirmed that substances sold through Nemesis Market included highly potent and often deadly mixtures of fentanyl, heroin, acetylfentanyl, and protonitazene—all classified as Schedule I or II controlled substances.
“The allegations in this indictment span over four hundred thousand transactions involving fentanyl, other dangerous drugs, and a wide range of contraband made accessible on the darknet for more than three years,” said Matthew R. Galeotti, Head of the DOJ’s Criminal Division. “Thanks to global cooperation, including assistance from German and Lithuanian authorities, we’ve dismantled this marketplace and taken steps to hold its alleged operator accountable.”
U.S. law enforcement seized Nemesis Market on March 20, 2024, halting its operations and cutting off access to its servers. In March 2025, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against Parsarad, revealing the marketplace facilitated nearly $30 million in drug sales.
Parsarad faces federal charges of conspiracy to distribute and distribution of controlled substances, as well as money laundering conspiracy. Prosecutors allege he promoted drug trafficking and provided cryptocurrency mixing services to help obscure the origins of illicit funds.
“Whether it’s on the streets or online, anyone profiting from the sale of illegal drugs will be held accountable,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Carol M. Skutnik for the Northern District of Ohio. “We are committed to protecting our communities from this type of transnational harm.”
The FBI Cleveland Division is leading the investigation, with support from the DEA, IRS Criminal Investigation, and other federal agencies. The case was developed under the FBI’s Joint Criminal Opioid and Darknet Enforcement (J-CODE) operation—a collaborative initiative involving the DEA, Postal Inspection Service, Homeland Security Investigations, and others.
International support was crucial in the case, with significant contributions from partners in Germany, Lithuania, Türkiye, and the British Virgin Islands.
If convicted, Parsarad faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison, with the possibility of life.
Note: An indictment is a formal accusation, not proof of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
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