DOJ Claims Alleged Dream Market Administrator Laundered Cryptocurrency into Gold
The U.S. Department of Justice has charged German national Owe Martin Andresen in connection with an alleged money laundering operation linked to Dream Market, a darknet marketplace that was closed in 2019.
Summary
- Andresen was charged by the DOJ over alleged laundering related to Dream Market administrator wallets.
- Prosecutors indicated that inactive crypto wallets transferred funds prior to the purchase of gold bars sent to Germany.
- Authorities seized $1.7 million worth of gold bars, cash, and crypto-related assets during their investigations.
According to prosecutors, Andresen is believed to be the primary administrator of the site. Additionally, the DOJ reported that he was arrested in Germany last week on parallel charges within that country.
U.S. prosecutors claim he utilized inactive Dream Market administrator wallets to transfer funds, subsequently converting part of those proceeds into gold bars.
Prosecutors highlight inactive crypto wallets
Dream Market, which launched in 2013, grew to be one of the largest darknet marketplaces before its closure. Prosecutors noted that at its peak, the site featured nearly 100,000 listings and employed Tor and cryptocurrency to obscure users and transactions.
Following the shutdown, the DOJ asserted that Dream Market’s crypto infrastructure remained largely intact. They noted that activity recommenced in late 2022 when funds were transferred from old Dream Market wallets into newly consolidated ones, indicating that only someone with access to the original private keys could have initiated the transfers.
Furthermore, prosecutors alleged that Andresen engaged a crypto service provider based in Atlanta to acquire gold bars from international suppliers in August 2023, with the bars reportedly delivered to his residence in Germany.
The DOJ claimed that Andresen laundered over $2 million from August 2023 to April 2025. In searches conducted on May 7, investigators uncovered approximately $1.7 million in gold bars, over $23,000 in cash, and documents related to bank accounts and crypto wallets estimated to contain around $1.2 million purportedly from Dream Market transactions.
Ongoing crypto crime investigations
A federal grand jury has indicted Andresen on six counts of international concealment money laundering and six counts of concealment money laundering. Each charge in the U.S. could result in up to 20 years of imprisonment. The DOJ emphasized that Andresen is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
This case is part of a broader crackdown on crypto-related money laundering. Crypto.news reported that the DOJ recently concluded the forfeiture of assets exceeding $400 million associated with Helix, a darknet crypto mixer. Additional reports indicated that a California man received a 70-month prison sentence for laundering funds linked to a $263 million crypto theft operation.