On Tuesday night, President Donald Trump issued a pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the man behind the dark web marketplace Silk Road, known for operating under the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts.” Since 2015, Ulbricht has been serving a life sentence without parole after being convicted of several charges, including distribution of narcotics.
The Silk Road marketplace, accessible exclusively through the Tor network, played a significant role in the early commercialization of Bitcoin. Users engaged in trading various illicit items, including drugs and forged documents.
Over the years, Ulbricht has become a symbol for a specific faction of right-wing supporters, particularly within the crypto community that embraced Trump last year. His supporters argue that Ulbricht’s life sentence is excessively harsh compared to similar cases; for instance, Blake Benthall, who ran Silk Road 2.0, received a much lighter sentence of time served and three years probation. Ulbricht’s associate, Thomas Clark, also known as “Variety Jones,” was sentenced to 20 years in prison last year.
Despite the nonviolent nature of the crimes, the judge considered the multiple deaths linked to drugs purchased through the Silk Road before sentencing Ulbricht.
Throughout his trial, Ulbricht maintained his innocence regarding the charges. Law enforcement arrested him with his laptop open, which allowed them to access all his files, including the Silk Road’s code, private messages with employees, and a diary that contained entries matching OKCupid messages associated with Ross Ulbricht’s real identity.
