Police shut 30 webshops linked to counterfeit pill deaths

Dutch police shut down 30 websites allegedly used to sell counterfeit prescription medicines and other illegal drugs. The operation matters because the pills were linked to the deaths of three people and contained nitazenes, extremely potent synthetic opioids.

Police arrested three men: a 35-year-old from Kwintsheul, a 39-year-old from Rotterdam and a 66-year-old from The Hague. They are suspected of offering, selling and supplying illegal drugs, including sedatives, sleeping pills and oxycodone.

The investigation went beyond simply removing webpages. Police also seized the servers and data supporting the sites, along with crypto wallets, cash and valuables. They searched five locations, including homes and a storage box in The Hague. Police said the main players were in custody, but warned that other criminal groups continue operating similar online drug shops.

The figures show the scale and human cost of the investigation. Dutch police took 30 websites offline, arrested three men and connected the counterfeit pills to the deaths of three people.

The suspects allegedly ran online shops selling illegal drugs, including sedatives, sleeping pills and painkillers such as oxycodone. Police identified Slaappillen.net and regionapp.net as sites where victims bought prescription-only pills shortly before they died. Those pills contained nitazenes, powerful synthetic opioids.

The operation was larger than a normal website closure. Police searched five locations and seized servers, data, crypto wallets, cash and valuables. They said the main players from the group were in custody. However, the numbers do not mean online drug sales have ended. Police warned that several criminal groups continue putting similar websites online, creating a continuing challenge.

Nitazenes are synthetic opioids. The article describes them as extremely potent substances found inside counterfeit sedatives, sleeping pills and painkillers. Their strength makes them a major danger when hidden in medicines sold online.

Police say nitazenes can be many times stronger than morphine and more lethal than fentanyl. That means a counterfeit pill presented as a prescription medicine may contain a substance with a very different and much greater danger than the buyer expects. The victims in this case bought pills shortly before they died.

The risk is especially serious because the products were sold as prescription-only medicines through websites. Buyers may believe they are receiving ordinary sleeping pills or oxycodone, while the contents are counterfeit and contain potent synthetic opioids. The article does not describe the exact dose in each pill, but it links the nitazene-containing medicines to three deaths.

Investigators connected the deaths to Slaappillen.net and regionapp.net through the victims’ purchases. Police say the victims bought prescription-only pills on one of those websites shortly before they died.

The products were sold as medicines such as sedatives, sleeping pills or painkillers, including oxycodone. Police say the pills were counterfeit and contained nitazenes, extremely potent synthetic opioids. This combination gave investigators a direct link between the online sales and the fatal outcomes.

Police are holding the suspects responsible for running the websites and suspect them of offering, selling and supplying illegal drugs. The article does not describe the specific forensic evidence or the exact identity of each website used by each victim. It does say that both named sites were connected to the purchases and that the investigation continues after servers and data were seized.

Closing a webpage does not necessarily remove the operation behind it. If the people, servers, data and other tools remain available, they can move the same sales activity to another web address.

Police said Slaappillen.net had already been taken down the previous year. The suspects allegedly continued selling counterfeit drugs through other websites, which appeared as soon as earlier ones disappeared. This repeated cycle is why police compared the problem to whack-a-mole.

The wider threat also remains because the arrested suspects are not the only actors involved. Ron van Brussel said several criminal groups keep these kinds of sites online. Police therefore warned that illegal online drug sales are far from over, even after this operation. Taking down individual pages may interrupt sales, but stopping the broader system requires targeting the technology and people supporting it.

Seizing servers can disrupt an operation more deeply than deleting webpages. A website depends on technical systems to store its pages, process activity and hold related data. Removing those systems can prevent operators from simply switching the site back on.

Police said they had taken down “the entire technology behind the websites.” They confiscated the servers on which the shops ran and seized the data for investigation. Ron van Brussel said this made it more difficult for the suspects to make a restart.

The seizure also gives investigators material to examine. Police searched five locations and took crypto wallets, cash and valuables. More arrests have not been ruled out. This approach may slow or expose the operation, but it does not guarantee that illegal sales will end. Police warned that other criminal groups continue keeping similar sites online.

Prescription medicines are regulated to control their supply and reduce risks from powerful or unsuitable drugs. Doctors and pharmacies normally help ensure that the medicine, strength and use are appropriate. The article identifies these pills as prescription-only, yet they were sold through criminal websites.

A counterfeit pill may look like a familiar medicine but contain something else. In this case, police say pills sold as sedatives, sleeping pills or painkillers such as oxycodone contained nitazenes. These synthetic opioids can be many times stronger than morphine and more lethal than fentanyl.

That mismatch creates a fatal danger. A buyer may expect a prescription medicine but receive an unpredictable, highly potent opioid instead. Without knowing the true contents, the person can take a dose that causes a lethal overdose. Police say three people died after buying pills through the named websites, showing why unregulated online medicine sales can have deadly consequences.