District Court freezes bitcoin, monero, booze, silver and more than a million in cash belonging to Erin Gold and Tom Booker
A young couple accused of running an intricate dark-web drug dealing operation have had more than a million in cash, crypto, luxury booze and precious metal frozen by the courts.
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A young couple accused of running an intricate dark-web drug dealing operation has had hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cryptocurrency, luxury booze and precious metal frozen by the courts.
Tom Booker, 27, and Erin Gold, 32, are facing numerous drug trafficking and money laundering charges stemming from an operation that prosecutors allege was earning them as much as $25,000 a day.
Documents recently released by the District Court reveal the wealth prosecutors say belonged to the couple.
Along with two properties and a motorbike frozen by the court during an earlier application, the Director of Public Prosecutions has identified multiple cryptocurrency wallets and transactions linked to the accused.
Judge Karen Thomas heard during an application earlier this year the couple was linked to $466,752 in the cryptocurrency bitcoin.
The DPP also claims the couple had $122,123.42 in monero – a “privacy coin” that has been linked to online money laundering and drug trafficking because of its untraceable nature.
Some of the funds remained in online wallets held by the pair, while other amounts had already been transferred.
Judge Thomas ordered the cryptocurrency be frozen, along with $820,000 in cash seized during police raids and $174,703 in bank accounts belonging to the pair.
Among the more unusual items seized by police were a silver 1kg ingot and an extensive collection of luxury alcohol.
One of the bottles seized by police, a sealed bottle of Macallan Reflexion single-malt Scotch whisky, regularly retails for about $1800.
Other bottles included luxury tequilas and mescals, whiskys from Japan and Australia, and expensive bottles of bourbon.
Ms Gold, an accountant and burlesque dancer, and Mr Booker, a former police officer, are charged alongside Ryan Suri-Tucker, who is alleged to have been assisting in the operation.
The DPP also successfully moved to freeze Mr Suri-Tucker’s assets, which consisted of $420 cash and $1058 worth of monero.
At the time of the trio’s arrest, police said the freezing of the cryptocurrency linked to Mr Booker and Ms Gold was the largest of its kind in Australian history.
In November last year, police raided numerous properties around Adelaide, including the offices of an accountancy firm in the CBD.
Police have alleged during bail applications that Mr Suri-Tucker and Mr Booker were caught “red handed” packaging and sorting drugs at a Kings Park property.
A computer with a spread sheet of shipments to be sent and packaged was allegedly open in front of the two men.
Ms Gold was arrested at the office of her employer.
Police have alleged the trio were operating the syndicate under the online pseudonym “Underline Cost”.
The alleged offending came to the attention of police when 8000 LSD tabs bound for South Australia from Luxembourg were seized by police.
A post office box, which had been the intended destination for the consignment, was monitored by police and Mr Booker was allegedly identified dropping off and picking up packages.
All three were initially remanded in custody. They are yet to enter pleas in relation to the charges.
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