A group of students in Durham, England has been profiting off a thriving drug trade at their university.
The undergraduate students are seeking to spice up their nightlife market for the illegal drugs.
The dealers are sourcing their stocks from dark web markets and reselling it to other students for up to 700 percent profit.
These dealers are making thousands of pounds per month engaging in the illegal trade.
The fact that students and other people are buying drugs from the dark web is no longer a surprise.
However, the scale of drug trade at this university is worrying. There are more students abusing illegal drugs than authorities, school administration and parents realize.
The dealers live double lives. They are committed students with a desire to complete school and find a good job on one hand, and they are busy drug dealers on the other. Interestingly, some do not do it for the money. They do it because they find it thrilling.
Dark Web Drugs
The Palatinate, a student-run newspaper at Durham University, has reported of a thriving drug trade at the higher education institution.
According to the publication, nightlife at Durham University can be wild and out of control. This kind of behavior is being fueled by the high prevalence of illegal drugs in Durham.
The Palatinate met up and interviewed the dealers, in a bid to try and get to the bottom of the trade.
They explain how they go about business, and how much money they are making off of it.
A Trevelyan College finalist named Dec is one of the marijuana drug dealers in Durham.
He says he gets his supplies from a local drug dealer, who delivers to his doorstep, and he sells to trusted fellow students at a profit.
Dec reckons that his fellow dealers are however picking up their supplies from the dark web.
As a weed dealer, Dec says he feels a bit more relaxed while selling as compared to the other dealers.
The police chief in County Durham has openly called for the legalization of marijuana. Marijuana dealers have become more relaxed and bolder with their operations.
Dec describes the dark web as the "Amazon for drugs." The dealers claim the dark web has the purest drugs.
They trust in the rating system offered by the drug markets. The vendors survive on the markets off of customer reviews, just like on any other e-commerce site.
Great reviews obviously mean that the vendor is trustworthy and their product is good quality. That's at least what the dealers in Durham believe.
Making Thousands
The dealers find buying from the dark web cheaper than buying from local suppliers.
According to Wilf, another dealer, he made 4,000 pounds last year while buying from local suppliers, but that was three-quarters of what he made in a month after he started buying from the dark web.
Wilf calls himself a businessman. He is in awe at how easy it is to procure and sell the drugs, as well as make lots of money from it.
He reveals that he carries the drugs in book slots. Apparently, even dogs cannot sniff the drugs from there.
He has a trusted circle of customers and friends who enable him to offset his stocks easily.
Among the drugs being sold in Durham include MDMA, ketamine, Xanax, Valium and nitrous oxide.
Valium, for instance, is bought for 50 percent on the dark web. Dealers like Wilf sell two pieces for 5 pounds.
That is a considerable high profit margin, leading to the opportunity that these dealers can make thousands every month.
The Palatinate found that dealers like Wilf are actually the small dogs in the business. There are bigger dealers who pry the trade as a full-time job.
There are two main dealers in Durham who are revered as the top dogs in the trade. They are still university students.
James, another student at Durham University, sells weed. He used to buy his supply from a local dealer for 180 pounds per ounce and sell it for 300 pounds in smaller packages.
He was selling an ounce every day, which was enough to rake him in thousands every month.
He is not making a lot more after he started sourcing his supplies from the dark web. He says the packages arrive vacuum-packed at the university's halls of residence.
The Fear
Despite the money these drug dealers are raking in, they cannot help but live in fear of getting caught.
They know they are taking on illegal activities and it's just a matter of time before the law catches up with them.
In fact, James has since quit the trade because the fear and paranoia were just too much for him.
He recounts how they would be smoking at an indoor party, and he would start worrying over how the police could just bump in.
Drug dealing has been proven to result in anxiety and other mental health challenges.
Wilf admits that he is undertaking criminal activity too. He has the same fear and paranoia, but believes he is careful and tactical with his operations.
Dealers like Wilf continue to thrive in Durham. They have managed to evade the radar of the university and local police.
Drug supply to college students goes on like a norm. The wild nights in Durham are just a clear indicator of the level of drug consumption there.
The Palatinate sought the response of the university's administration. Apparently, they have no idea of the depth of the problem.
Owen Adams, the pro-vice-chancellor for Durham University's Colleges and Student Experience program, asked The Palatinate for more details and also promised to delve deeper into the issue.
