Prosecutor Morgan Brown made it clear that the authorities had a lot of information about Howard from the Silk Road, including access to his profile, which he registered under the name Shadh1 in April 2012. He set up a vendor’s account offering up cocaine and speed and saying that he is looking to “branch into more as I get more coin back in my pocket”.

At the time of Howard’s arrest, the Australian Federal Police and the Customs and Border Protection Service issued a warning to any would-be drug traders using supposedly anonymous marketplaces such as the Silk Road saying they could be identified by police techniques.

AFP manager of crime operations Peter Sykora said in a statement: “Criminals are attempting to exploit the international mail system through online networks, but the recent arrest demonstrates that we are one step ahead of them. The AFP will continue to identify, investigate, and prosecute individuals or groups importing narcotics into Australia, including via illicit e-commerce platforms such as Silk Road.”

Australian police aren’t the only ones to crack down on the Silk Road. The DEA in the United States is also on the warpath, targeting similar sites such as the Farmer’s Market. In July 2012 the organisation told a US news station KXAN that it was investigating the Silk Road and in November 2012, DEA spokesperson Rusty Payne told The Verge when quizzed on the Silk Road: “Typically we’re not really giving out investigative updates about what we’re doing, but it’s safe to say we are heavily involved in looking into that.” In the UK, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and the Metropolitan Police E-Crime unit have also been digging into the marketplace.

However, despite all of these investigations, the conviction rate isn’t looking all that promising for law enforcement.