Homeland Security Task Force investigation leads to indictment against digital-age drug dealer

Date: June 18, 2026

Contact: [email protected]

Denver, CO - The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado announces that Aleksei L. Sharp of Arvada was indicted on charges related to trafficking in cocaine, ketamine, and 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (commonly referred to as "MDMA" or "ecstasy") and subsequent efforts to launder the resulting proceeds via cryptocurrency transactions.

The indictment, unsealed upon the defendant's initial appearance in Court on June 17, 2026, alleges that the defendant used encrypted communications to directly sell illegal drugs to buyers, which he would then distribute through the United States Postal Service. To conceal various aspects of the proceeds the defendant allegedly set up virtual currency wallets, instructed buyers to transfer virtual currencies into those wallets, and then engaged in transactions on cryptocurrency exchanges to hide the money trail and convert the virtual currency into cash.

This operation is part of the Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF) initiative established by Executive Order 14159, Protecting the American People Against Invasion. The HSTF is a whole-of-government partnership dedicated to eliminating criminal cartels, foreign gangs, transnational criminal organizations, and human smuggling and trafficking rings operating in the United States and abroad. Through historic interagency collaboration, the HSTF directs the full might of United States law enforcement towards identifying, investigating, and prosecuting the full spectrum of crimes committed by these organizations, which have long fueled violence and instability within our borders. In performing this work, the HSTF places special emphasis on investigating and prosecuting those engaged in child trafficking or other crimes involving children. The HSTF further utilizes all available tools to prosecute and remove the most violent criminal aliens from the United States. The Rocky Mountain HSTF comprises agents and officers from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Internal Revenue Service, Office of Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI), United States Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), United States Marshals Service (USMS), Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement / Enforcement and Removal Operations (ICE/ERO) with the prosecution being led by the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado.

Assistant United States Attorney Amanda Scott is handling the prosecution.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. It is the only federal law enforcement agency with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. IRS-CI has 18 field offices located across the U.S. and maintains an international presence through attaché posts abroad.