Chicago Man Sentenced to Nine Years in Prison for Selling Heroin and Cocaine on the Dark Web

CHICAGO - A Chicago man has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison for his role in a drug trafficking organization that sold heroin, cocaine, and other drugs through online stores on the dark web.

TOMMY SPAULDING sold the drugs on dark web vendor stores known as AVALANCHE and ETHER_MART. AVALANCHE sold heroin, crack cocaine, powder cocaine, and MDMA, while ETHER_MART specialized in heroin. Each store used a unique packaging style to distinguish itself. Spaulding managed the vendor stores' finances, including distributing money to others to purchase the drugs and helping to operate the stores. In 2018 and 2019, Spaulding was responsible for distributing more than seven kilograms of heroin and more than a kilogram of cocaine, among other narcotics.

Spaulding, 42, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to conspiracy and drug trafficking offenses. U.S. District Judge Edmond E. Chang imposed the nine-year prison term on May 29, 2026, during a sentencing hearing in federal court in Chicago.

The sentence was announced by Andrew S. Boutros, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, and Nicholas Bucciarelli, Postal Inspector in Charge of the Chicago Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service. Substantial assistance was provided by the Drug Enforcement Administration, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Chicago Police Department.

"The organization and structure of the vendor stores maximized the quantity of narcotics the defendants could distribute, and the stores were very successful," Assistant U.S. Attorney Erin Kelly argued in the government's sentencing memorandum. "All it took was a few clicks, and defendants counted on the simplicity, ease, and temptation of the online market to maximize their illicit sales and drug profits."

Four other defendants were charged as part of this investigation. LAUREN LUCANSKY, 40, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to a drug conspiracy charge and was sentenced in August 2025 to seven years in federal prison. Among other duties, Lucansky procured the drugs for the vendor stores, processed customer orders, and mailed narcotics to customers. NATHANEL BUTTERFIELD, 47, of Chicago, who procured the use of a condo in Chicago's River North neighborhood to package drugs and then mailed them to customers, and RICHARD MARTINEZ, 41, of Chicago, who fulfilled customer orders for drugs, each pleaded guilty to the drug conspiracy charge and are awaiting sentencing. MICHAEL BENTLEY, 37, of Chicago, pleaded guilty to operating a dark web store known as ALLGOLDEVERYTHING. On Feb. 17, 2026, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey I. Cummings sentenced Bentley to five and a half years in federal prison.