A Brisbane man who allegedly helped run the online drug and hacker bazaar Silk Road has been extradited to the United States to face trial.

Peter Phillip Nash, 41, was arrested last December by the Australian Federal Police after he was named in an indictment issued by the US justice department.

He is wanted in the US for conspiracy to engage in narcotics trafficking, computer hacking and money laundering.

If found guilty, he will face a maximum sentence of life in prison.

A spokeswoman for the Attorney-General's Department confirmed Nash had been sent to the US but did not specify when he left or when he would face trial.

What is the Silk Road? Website launched in February 2011, became known as 'eBay for drugs'

Website launched in February 2011, became known as 'eBay for drugs' Complex masking and encryption software made it difficult to track users

Complex masking and encryption software made it difficult to track users Users traded in Bitcoin - an online currency that hides purchasers' identities

Users traded in Bitcoin - an online currency that hides purchasers' identities Vendors would use regular mail to post drugs to buyers

Vendors would use regular mail to post drugs to buyers Drugs like heroin, cocaine and synthetic substances reportedly for sale

Drugs like heroin, cocaine and synthetic substances reportedly for sale Founder Ross William Ulbricht reportedly operated site from San Francisco

Founder Ross William Ulbricht reportedly operated site from San Francisco Ulbricht arrested and site shut down in October 2013

Ulbricht arrested and site shut down in October 2013 Ulbricht sentenced to life in prison in May 2015

Nash was listed in the indictment as the website's primary moderator and was allegedly paid between $US50,000 and $US75,000 a year.

Court documents show that during its more than two-and-a-half years in operation, Silk Road was used by thousands of drug dealers to traffic heroin, cocaine and amphetamines.

Officials last year arrested the alleged mastermind of the website, Ross William Ulbricht, who was said to go by the name Dread Pirate Roberts.

Ulbricht, who is awaiting trial in New York, has denied the charges and also claims he is not Dread Pirate Roberts.

Last year, a message appeared on social media site Reddit claiming Silk Road had reopened weeks after it was shut down by the FBI.

The message was signed "Dread Pirate Roberts" and said Silk Road had implemented "a complete security overhaul" to keep the marketplace out of the reach of authorities.

The site was accessible only through online encryption offered via a service known as Tor.

Federal agents announced in October 2013 that they had shut down the website, which used privacy protecting Tor and Bitcoin digital currency to shield the identities of buyers and sellers.

Authorities said that from about January 2011, Ulbricht ran a marketplace that hawked heroin, cocaine, LSD and methamphetamine, as well as hacker tools such as software for stealing passwords or logging keystrokes on people's machines.

Silk Road took in commissions ranging from 8 to 15 per cent of sales, raking in at least $80 million on more than $1.2 billion worth of transactions, the criminal complaint estimated.

ABC/AFP