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Unlike UFC fighter Alexander Gustafsson, his criminal namesake is not an individual the Swedes can be proud of.
The international criminal, who has the same name as the former UFC title challenger, is suspected to be the man behind the Swedish narcotics marketplace Flugsvamp 2.0.
According to a report on the November 26 edition of Svenska Morgonbladet (the report is in Swedish), Gustafsson's darknet site Flugsvamp 2.0 has facilitated drug trades worth SEK 450 million ( $43 million approx.) in the last three years. Per the report, the mode of payment on the illicit website has been identified as bitcoin.
Although Alexander Gustafsson managed to flee the country during the final days of the trial, the internationally wanted criminal has been sentenced in absentia to 8-11 years in prison.
As per a report by Forbes earlier this year, more than 450k crypto-wallet addresses linked to the darknet site have been identified by Swedish authorities.
The Swedish police reportedly had to seek assistance from more than 25 countries and 14 service providers to shut down the black-market narcotics platform.
Tove Kullberg of the National Unit Against Organized Crime, Swedish Prosecution Authority, was quoted as saying:
"We have received all of the support from both Cryptocurrency Exchange Platforms, Blockchain Analysis Tools companies as well as other players in the ecosystem both national and international that we have wished for during this very complex and multilayered investigation." [h/t Forbes]
Unlike his criminal namesake, MMA fighter Gustafsson is a former three-time UFC light heavyweight title challenger. 'The Mauler' holds wins over UFC greats such as Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua and Glover Teixeira.
Has UFC superstar Alexander Gustafsson ever been arrested?
It looks like UFC fighter Alexander Gustafsson has a violent past. The Swede was reportedly convicted of assault multiple times between 2002-2006.
As per an interview-based article by SPORT-Expressen, the former title challenger once even served 15 months in prison during his teenage years for aggravated assault. He was just 15 years old when he faced assault charges for the first time.
During the interview, Gustafsson shared that it was the lack of a proper goal in his life that led him down a destructive path:
"When I was young, I always had a lot of energy. And I had no real goal... I had great parents, [a] great family, but I didn't know where to go with all the energy. I ended up in negative paths and it became destructive behavior." [Translated by Google]
Furthermore, 'The Mauler' stated that it was mixed martial arts that ultimately helped him in turning his life around:
"MMA. When I started it, everything turned around. It was truly a wow experience. It was something special. I liked the special atmosphere at the club, among the guys." [Translated by Google]
Watch the UFC highlights of Alexander Gustafsson below:
