PORTLAND, Ore.—Skylaar Daylan Ford, 24, of Portland, Oregon, was sentenced today to 86 months in federal prison and three years’ supervised release for using the darknet to sell ecstasy to customers across the U.S.

According to court documents, in June 2017, Ford was on post-prison supervision after a previous conviction for possession of a Schedule II controlled substance in Lane County Circuit Court. During a June 9, 2017 visit to and search of Ford’s Northeast Portland home, a Multnomah County Probation and Parole Officer found more than 100 grams of heroin. Upon discovery of the heroin, the probation and parole officer contacted the Portland Police Bureau for assistance. PPB officers and a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent responded.

When the officers and agent arrived, they placed Ford under arrest and received consent to search his residence. During the search, the HSI agent located an unopened parcel addressed to Ford and his dog “Orbit.” The package was opened and found to contain nearly 500 grams of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) also known as “ecstasy” or “molly.” Ford admitted to purchasing the ecstasy from a vendor in the Netherlands and reselling on AlphaBay, a darknet marketplace. Investigators were later able to confirm that Ford had been an AlphaBay vendor since November 2016 and had completed more than 500 confirmed sales of ecstasy.

On January 9, 2019, Ford pleaded guilty to one count of possession with intent to distribute MDMA, a Schedule I controlled substance. As part of his plea agreement, Ford agreed to forfeit any property used to facilitate his crimes as identified by the government.

This case was investigated by HSI and the Portland Police Bureau. It was prosecuted by Scott M. Kerin, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.

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