How could an ordinary young man from Trois-Rivières become one of the great drug traffickers in the history of the country? In a new documentary series for Tou.tv, journalists Monic Néron and Simon Coutu try somehow to unravel the mystery surrounding Alexandre Cazes, who, from Thailand, administered one of the most important sites in the dark web in the world until his arrest by the FBI in 2017.
Their investigation has the merit of lifting the veil on the very occult world of the Deep Web. ALPHA_02: the Alexandre Cazes mystery also highlights the pasha life that Alexandre led thanks to the proceeds of his clandestine platform AlphaBay, which became a hub for the sale of drugs. At 25, he already owned several luxury cars and opulent residences, in Bangkok, but also in Cyprus and the Caribbean. A splendor that most of his relatives in Quebec did not know.
But even after watching all four episodes, some questions will remain unanswered. Will we really know one day the whole story of this computer genius, who, according to the official version, hanged himself in his prison cell in Bangkok in July 2017 while he was awaiting his extradition? in the USA ?
“Suicide? Maybe, maybe not. I am still in nothingness. Since I saw the cell, for me it remains physically impossible. But when someone really wants to end his life, everything is possible too…” says Alexandre’s mother, Danielle Héroux, who regrets not having had the body repatriated when she went to Bangkok in disaster. after his death.
It’s not the story of a glorified criminal, it’s the story of the fall of a man who had a huge influence on the criminal underworld.
Mme Héroux actively participated in the design of this documentary series. We feel in her a desire to restore the reputation of the only son she raised almost alone.
“Yes, he created something dreadful. But my son as such, he was a child like the others. He wasn’t a thug. I really think he needed to prove something,” she said Monday morning after the press screening.
do not glorify
The media were able to see the first two episodes of this series of four, which looks like a real thriller. Frédéric Nassif’s dynamic production manages to keep us on our toes until the next twist. Tou.tv plays in the court of Netflix and does not hide it.
The protagonist of the Netflix series Tinder scammer, Simon Leviev, here is called Alexandre Cazes. The people of Trois-Rivières are portrayed by those close to them as truly gifted, who, from an early age, developed a passion for computers. Before anyone else, in the early 2010s, he was among the first to believe in bitcoin, which at the time was still not worth much. Grown up in a modest environment, brought up by parents who separated when he was only two years old, the young Alexandre had expressed many times the desire to transcend his social class and become rich.
However, Alexander also had his cracks. At school, he struggled to form friendships and suffered from bullying. Did this injury end up pushing him to misuse his intelligence? No doubt, but the journalists Monic Néron and Simon Coutu try hard not to victimize their subject, as is too often the case in documentary series of the same genre.
“This is not the story of a glorified criminal, it is the story of the fall of a man who had a huge influence on the criminal world”, insists Monic Néron.
Some will say that Alexandre Cazes did not kill anyone, that he was only managing an illegal site. However, the Deep Web, of which he was one of the orchestra masters with his avatar ALPHA_02, does indeed claim victims. Since the dark web has grown in popularity, fentanyl has spread, with dealers less exposed behind their screens than on the street.
“Sometimes we have the impression that the Deep Web is far from us. But no. It concerns us with the rise in gun violence, identity theft, the opioid overdose crisis, ”adds Monic Néron.