Alexandre Cazes: Who was the AlphaBay founder and how did authorities catch him?

Canadian Alexandre Cazes was a young IT whiz who said he specialised in everything from web development to encryption services.

The 25-year-old suspected founder of dark net marketplace AlphaBay was arrested earlier this month on behalf of the United States in Thailand, and apparently took his life a week later while in Thai custody, the Justice Department said.

He faced charges relating to narcotics distribution, identity theft, money laundering and related crimes.

While still a teenager, Cazes was believed to have started his first company, EBX Technologies, selling computers and helping small businesses set up their websites.

His IT nous was clear to see; authorities say they have traced him to as far back as 2008, posting advice on a tech forum on how to remove a virus from a digital photo.

Cazes grew up near Montreal and his family said he was a genius.

"An extraordinary young man, with no history, no judicial record," his father Martin Cazes told Canadian news portal Canoe.

"He never smoked a cigarette, never used drugs."

But Cazes was soon to put his IT skills to a sinister use.

According to US prosecutors, EBX Technologies was a front company to, "justify his banking activity and substantial cryptocurrency holdings".

Cazes, 25, moved to Thailand about seven or eight years ago and in September 2014 is alleged to have founded AlphaBay, which was soon to become the world's biggest dark net market.

Until its seizure by US and European authorities, AlphaBay was 10 times bigger than the infamous Silk Road and traded in everything from drugs and chemicals to weapons and fake IDs.