Ross Ulbricht’s $183M Silk Road fine to be paid via $2.7B in BTC recovered from hacker

In a caller development, astir $2.7 cardinal successful Bitcoin (BTC) was recovered from a wallet linked to a Silk Road hack successful 2013 and volition beryllium utilized to wipe out the indebtedness owed to the U.S. Government by creator Ross Ulbricht.

More than $183 cardinal is owed by Ulbricht successful fines from amerciable income undertaken via the acheronian web platform. Prosecutors canceled this indebtedness nether 1 indispensable condition:

The Justice Department appears to person made a woody with Ulbricht to debar immoderate assertion helium mightiness person made to the money: In speech for Ulbricht’s statement to waive immoderate ownership helium mightiness person of the bitcoins, a information of them volition beryllium utilized to wage disconnected his restitution successful its entirety.

Given that the crypto stolen by Individual X had erstwhile belonged to Ulbricht, helium would person had a assertion to the 69,370 BTC presently sitting successful a U.S. authorities wallet.

The wallet to watch

The U.S. Justice Department seized the wallet from a idiosyncratic known lone arsenic “Individual X.”

The wallet contained 69,370 BTC and akin amounts of coins from forked projects. At today’s prices, the hoard is worthy $2.7 cardinal and was transferred to a wallet owned by the U.S. Justice Department successful November 2020.

The Feds apt moved the funds to guarantee that nary 1 with entree to the backstage keys could determination the BTC and arsenic a safeguard against the hacking community. While it is improbable that a random hacker could entree the wallet, determination person been numerous attempts implicit the years and listings for the backstage keys online.

The wallet to watch is disposable to each by simply viewing the blockchain data. If funds determination from this wallet, it is apt lone to bash 1 thing; sell. The U.S. has a argumentation of either selling oregon auctioning disconnected immoderate seized crypto alternatively than hodling.

What happens if it is sold?

The 24-hour volume for Bitcoin presently sits astir $16 billion. If the U.S. were to merchantability the confiscated treasure trove of 69,370 BTC, that would relationship for an summation of astir 19% regular volume.

The astir communal mode for the U.S. authorities to merchantability disconnected their seized Bitcoin is done the U.S. Marshals Service, with the astir caller merchantability successful February 2020 for 4,041 BTC.

Currently, they clasp the BTC in custody with Anchorage Digital. The recovered BTC is held successful this wallet:

“bc1qa5wkgaew2dkv56kfvj49j0av5nml45x9ek9hz6”