Dream Market Admin Arrested in Germany Over $2 Million Laundering Scheme
Updated
Updated · FOX 5 Atlanta · May 13
Dream Market Admin Arrested in Germany Over $2 Million Laundering Scheme
4 articles · Updated · FOX 5 Atlanta · May 13
Owe Martin Andresen, 49, was arrested in Germany last week and charged in Atlanta with 12 federal counts tied to Dream Market, a major darknet marketplace shut down in 2019.
Prosecutors say Andresen, known as “Speedstepper,” ran the site for six years and later used original private keys to access dormant cryptocurrency commissions that remained in Dream Wallets.
More than $2 million was allegedly laundered from August 2023 to April 2025, including through an Atlanta crypto service that converted proceeds into gold bars shipped to his home in Germany.
Investigators say Dream Market once hosted nearly 100,000 listings and facilitated sales including 90 kilograms of heroin, 450 kilograms of cocaine and 36 kilograms of fentanyl.
$1.7 million in gold bars and $1.2 million in bank and crypto funds were recovered, though Andresen’s extradition timeline remains unclear as Germany is pursuing parallel charges.
If darknet markets still make billions, does catching one kingpin seven years later actually change anything?
How did investigators trace millions in 'anonymous' crypto to one man and his gold bars after seven years?
Can tracking illicit crypto on the dark web predict and help prevent future public health crises?
Dream Market’s $2 Million Laundering Scheme Exposed: Owe Martin Andresen Arrested, Gold Bars and Crypto Recovered
Overview
On May 7, 2026, Owe Martin Andresen, suspected administrator of the darknet marketplace Dream Market, was arrested in Germany through close cooperation between federal and German law enforcement. Andresen allegedly managed extensive money laundering operations, channeling profits from illegal activities like drug sales and stolen personal data through cryptocurrency wallets and converting them into gold bars to hide their origins. Although Dream Market officially shut down in 2019, the reactivation of its funds in 2022 led to renewed investigations. Andresen now faces charges in both Germany and the United States, highlighting the growing effectiveness of international efforts against darknet crime.