A Vaucluse man accused of being the ringleader of a dark web drug importation syndicate had contraband sent to his mother's house, a court has heard.

Self-described "elite hacker" Dov Tenenboim is facing the prospect of life behind bars if convicted of masterminding the trafficking of large amounts of illicit drugs from the Netherlands into Australia via the online black market.

Dov Tenenboim is facing the prospect of life behind bars if convicted. Credit:Facebook

A failed bail application before NSW Supreme Court judge Natalie Adams heard on Tuesday that a syndicate member who had met Mr Tenenboim through the dark web and become involved in the importation of cocaine and MDMA had turned Crown witness.

Commonwealth Department of Public Prosecutions lawyer Karthikeyan Kanagasabapathy told Justice Adams the two most serious charges relating to commercial importation relied "almost solely" on the evidence from the witness's testimony.