The US Court of Appeals has finalized the process of formally seizing 69,370 Bitcoins and other cryptocurrencies from the Silk Road darknet marketplace.
Following a previous ruling that established government ownership of digital assets connected to Silk Road’s illegal activities, the US Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has confirmed the transfer of Bitcoin into federal control. This decision comes after the initial order to seize Bitcoin from Silk Road was made by the US court in August.
US Court Confirms Seizure of 69,000 Bitcoins in Silk Road Case
Earlier this year, US prosecutors announced the conviction of James Zhong, who pleaded guilty to stealing 50,000 Bitcoins from Silk Road. A spokesperson for the regulator revealed that Zhong had stolen the Bitcoin in 2012 and successfully concealed his crime for nearly a decade.
In November 2021, authorities conducted a search of the defendant’s residence and discovered approximately 50,676 Bitcoins, $700,000 in cash, and precious metal bars. The private keys to Zhong’s crypto wallets were secured in an underground safe. In March of the same year, Zhong willingly surrendered an additional 1,004 Bitcoins to the authorities.
However, the US government does not retain the digital assets confiscated in the Silk Road case. During the court proceedings, it was disclosed that the authorities will dispose of the seized cryptocurrencies by the end of 2023.
Platform Established by Ross Ulbricht
Ross Ulbricht created and operated the Silk Road platform, notorious for facilitating the sale of drugs and weapons. The FBI brought down the website following Ulbricht’s arrest in late 2013. In 2022, Ulbricht agreed to allocate $3 billion worth of stolen Bitcoin to repay his debt to the US government. Additionally, he relinquished his claim to 69,470 Bitcoins.