Who Are the Drug Dealers Selling through Telegram Channels? The Network Exposed

The General Prosecutor's Office reports that a criminal group involved in the illegal circulation of narcotics and large-scale money laundering through internet messaging applications, particularly Telegram channels, has been uncovered within the framework of a criminal case being investigated by the Armenian Investigative Committee's Main Investigation Department.

The preliminary investigation has revealed that a citizen of Armenia, D.K., who is wanted for another crime and has settled abroad, created and managed the Telegram channels "Green Market" and "David Van October" from 2019 to 2022, which consist of over 50 shops selling drugs and have more than 20,000 followers. For this purpose, he formed a stable criminal group involving more than 10 individuals, with clearly defined roles among them.

In particular, for the illegal cultivation, preparation, storage, and transportation of narcotics, individuals H.L., A.M., A.O., and other unidentified persons were included in the group. In order to sell his own narcotics, as well as drugs obtained from other individuals, he incorporated D.M. into the criminal group. The latter utilized his page named "BOB Marley" in the same channel for the purpose of selling narcotics.

To convert the money obtained from drug sales into electronic funds and ultimately manage them as cash, engaging in money laundering and aiming to legalize the financial resources acquired from the online drug trade, the group included G.G., who deals in cryptocurrency exchanges. He, in turn, ensured the legalization of the organized group's criminal revenues, during which the circulation of his electronic wallets exceeded 1 billion AMD.

Six individuals have been charged under various articles of the Armenian Penal Code, specifically articles 266 and 190, for the illegal circulation of large quantities of narcotics and the legalization of property acquired through criminal means, with preventive detention applied to five of them.

The preliminary investigation of the criminal case continues. It is noted that through effective cooperation between the General Prosecutor's Office, the Armenian Investigative Committee, and the Police, necessary criminal procedural and operational-investigative measures are being undertaken, including the use of cooperation procedures by the prosecutor's office, aimed at identifying all individuals involved in the criminal schemes, the payment instruments used, and the full extent of the property obtained and legalized through criminal activities.