Empire Market Vendor "chlnsaint" Pleads Guilty
~3 min read | Published on 2023-04-14, tagged Darkweb-Vendor, Pleaded-Guilty using 542 words.
A Florida man admitted distributing large quantities of a wide variety of drugs through the dark web and the encrypted messaging application, Wickr.
According to court documents, from August 2019 through August 2020, 35-year-old Chaloner Saintillus of Delray Beach, Florida, sold fentanyl, heroin, oxycodone, oxymorphone, and other opioids on the now-defunct Empire Market through the vendor name "chlnsaint". He sold the drugs under the username "showstill" on Wickr.
As investigations by the Northern California Illicit Digital Economy (NCIDE) Task Force revealed, Saintillus' put no effort into securing his drug trafficking operation.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigators launched the investigations in April 2020. The investigators made multiple undercover purchases from the vendor during the investigations. The first purchase, made on April 12, 2020, provided the investigators with enough information to link Saintillus to chlnsaint.
Tracking information revealed that the drug package was mailed from a Self Service Kiosk (SSK) in a post office at Delray Beach, Florida. Surveillance images obtained from the kiosk, booking photos, and a Florida Department of Motor Vehicles image revealed that the package had been mailed by Saintillus.
USPS records later revealed that there were three accounts associated with Saintillus. Two of the accounts directly linked Saintillus to Chlnsaint.
Internet searches of Saintillus' name led the investigators to posts on two discussion forums by a user named Chaloner Saintillus, that was also using the email [email protected]. The investigators also found Saintillus' image used as the profile photo for a user going by the name "Chlnsaint" on a dating site. There is a Twitter account opened in 2009 under the username @chlnsaint and the name Chaloner Saintillus.
The investigators made nine additional undercover purchases from the vendor through Empire Market and Wickr. USPS surveillance images revealed that Saintillus mailed seven of the nine drug packages received by the investigators.
Further investigations revealed that the postage of four of the undercover drug packages had been paid for using a Wells Fargo debit card. Information from Wells Fargo bank revealed that the account associated with the card was Saintillus'. Saintillus had also been using the card to make regular purchases from the USPS for postage.
The investigators conducted Surveillance of Saintillus on October 8, 2020. They followed him to a post office and saw him mail a package. The investigators seized the package and acquired a search warrant for it. The package carried 7 grams of a white substance that tested positive for fentanyl.
The investigators executed a search warrant at Saintillus' residence on October 26, 2020. The search led to the seizure of large quantities of drugs, approximately $25,000 in XRP, a loaded firearm, and over 2,000 rounds of ammunition in a suitcase.
Saintillus fulfilled more than 1,100 orders on Empire Market. On April 6, 2023, he pleaded guilty to 12 counts of distributing controlled substances.
Saintillus will be sentenced on July 10, 2023. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $12 million.
Chaloner Saintillus
According to court documents, from August 2019 through August 2020, 35-year-old Chaloner Saintillus of Delray Beach, Florida, sold fentanyl, heroin, oxycodone, oxymorphone, and other opioids on the now-defunct Empire Market through the vendor name "chlnsaint". He sold the drugs under the username "showstill" on Wickr.
As investigations by the Northern California Illicit Digital Economy (NCIDE) Task Force revealed, Saintillus' put no effort into securing his drug trafficking operation.
According to the criminal complaint, the investigators launched the investigations in April 2020. The investigators made multiple undercover purchases from the vendor during the investigations. The first purchase, made on April 12, 2020, provided the investigators with enough information to link Saintillus to chlnsaint.
Tracking information revealed that the drug package was mailed from a Self Service Kiosk (SSK) in a post office at Delray Beach, Florida. Surveillance images obtained from the kiosk, booking photos, and a Florida Department of Motor Vehicles image revealed that the package had been mailed by Saintillus.
USPS records later revealed that there were three accounts associated with Saintillus. Two of the accounts directly linked Saintillus to Chlnsaint.
First USPS Account
- Username: Chlnsaint
- Name: Chaloner Saintillus
- Address: 222 SW 3rd Ave, Delray Beach, FL 33444
- Phone: 561-853-4220 and 561-774-4760
- Email: [email protected]
Second USPS Account
- Username: [email protected]
- Name: Chaloner Saintillus - S and S Corporation
- Address: 222 SW 3rd Ave, Delray Beach, FL 33444
- Phone: 954-605-4135
- Email: [email protected]
Third USPS Account
- Username: [email protected]
- Name: Chaloner Saintillus
- Address: 222 SW 3rd Ave, Delray Beach, FL 33444
- Phone: 561-774-4760
- Email: [email protected]
Internet searches of Saintillus' name led the investigators to posts on two discussion forums by a user named Chaloner Saintillus, that was also using the email [email protected]. The investigators also found Saintillus' image used as the profile photo for a user going by the name "Chlnsaint" on a dating site. There is a Twitter account opened in 2009 under the username @chlnsaint and the name Chaloner Saintillus.
The investigators made nine additional undercover purchases from the vendor through Empire Market and Wickr. USPS surveillance images revealed that Saintillus mailed seven of the nine drug packages received by the investigators.
The undercover purchases
Further investigations revealed that the postage of four of the undercover drug packages had been paid for using a Wells Fargo debit card. Information from Wells Fargo bank revealed that the account associated with the card was Saintillus'. Saintillus had also been using the card to make regular purchases from the USPS for postage.
The investigators conducted Surveillance of Saintillus on October 8, 2020. They followed him to a post office and saw him mail a package. The investigators seized the package and acquired a search warrant for it. The package carried 7 grams of a white substance that tested positive for fentanyl.
The investigators executed a search warrant at Saintillus' residence on October 26, 2020. The search led to the seizure of large quantities of drugs, approximately $25,000 in XRP, a loaded firearm, and over 2,000 rounds of ammunition in a suitcase.
Saintillus fulfilled more than 1,100 orders on Empire Market. On April 6, 2023, he pleaded guilty to 12 counts of distributing controlled substances.
Saintillus will be sentenced on July 10, 2023. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $12 million.
