Sky Justin Gornik, age 39, of San Diego was sentenced to 70 months in prison for participating in a conspiracy to deliver, distribute and dispense controlled substances through the internet. Gornik previously pled guilty to that charge and also admitted that he engaged in a conspiracy to launder drug proceeds using digital currencies.
As part of his guilty plea, Gornik admitted that he bought and sold controlled substances on the Dark Web. Employing anonymous screen names, Gornik used multiple Dark Web marketplaces (including Alpha Bay, Trade Route, Abraxas, Evolution, Outlaw Market, and Dream Market) to buy and sell controlled substances.
Specifically, Gornik admitted that he purchased and sold fentanyl and purchased the especially deadly opiate carfentanil using a variety of digital currencies. Gornik also purchased and sold multiple other controlled substances, including thousands of vials of ketamine, oxycodone pills, Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), Psilocybin and Psilocin, Amphetamine, Buprenorphine, Methamphetamine, and Naloxone.
Agents seized 1.7 grams of carfentanil inside Gornik’s residence on June 7, 2017. Carfentanil is a synthetic opioid approximately 10,000 more potent than morphine and 100 times more potent than fentanyl. The 1.722 grams of carfentanil seized in Gornik’s residence could equate to over 86,000 fatal dosages.
Gornik also possessed sheets of fentanyl gelatin tablets (approximately 100 tabs per sheet), which agents seized during the search. The public record reflects that Gornik obtained 600-1200 fentanyl gel tablets each week for approximately two years from a Dark Web vendor, identified as Steven Wallace George, who resides in Oklahoma. George, who manufactured pure fentanyl obtained from China into gelatin tablets, was prosecuted by federal authorities in Oklahoma.
As part of his guilty plea, Gornik agreed to forfeit millions of dollars in digital or crypto currency including Bitcoins, Stratis, Ethereum, 2350 Monero, digital currency contained in Gornik’s Bittrex accounts, and digital currency contained in Gornik’s Poloniex accounts. Gornik admitted that these digital or crypto currency represented drug trafficking proceeds of the offense and were involved in the offense of money laundering over the Dark Web.
This case is the result of the ongoing efforts by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF), a partnership that brings together the combined expertise and unique abilities of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies. The principal mission of the OCDETF program is to identify, disrupt, dismantle and prosecute high-level members of drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and money laundering organizations and enterprises.