Operator of dark web site “ADDERALL123” accused of selling methamphetamine

Two Bay Area men have been charged with distributing methamphetamine after investigators linked them to a website on the dark web that mailed fake Adderall containing methamphetamine to customers, court records in San Francisco show.

Andrew and Tony Tan are charged with possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine, a federal charge that carries a maximum penalty of 40 years in prison and a $5 million fine. The criminal complaint alleges that authorities linked the two men to an account named ADDERALL123 and are investigating possible links to a third person.

The investigation began in April 2021; shortly thereafter, undercover DEA agents began ordering Adderall pills against the account. The account offered various quantities of 30 mg prescription pills for the treatment of ADHD.

For example, in September 2021, agents purchased 200 pills from the account and tested them, which showed they were positive for methamphetamine, the criminal complaint states. According to the criminal complaint, police tracked the shipment from the account to a post office in Daly City and used surveillance video to identify the sender as Andrew Tan.

Later that month, agents staked out post offices in San Bruno, San Francisco and Daly City and found Andrew Tan mailing packages again. They linked his Subaru car to an address in San Francisco, the complaint says, and agents then searched his iCloud storage account.

In it, "agents observed a video dated June 16, 2020, showing Tony Tan sitting indoors, removing orange round pills from a large clear zip-lock bag, and then sliding the pills onto a piece of white paper. The pills in the video match the appearance of the counterfeit Adderall pills the agents purchased, which were pressed with methamphetamine." A DEA agent wrote in the complaint.

The complaint says both are family members, but doesn't specify beyond that. They were both released from prison while the charges were pending and waived their right to an expedited pretrial hearing, records show.