Breaking News: Donald Trump Pardons Silk Road Founder Ross Ulbricht
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United States President Donald Trump has granted a full pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the Silk Road online marketplace. Ulbricht was serving a life sentence after being convicted for running the platform, which facilitated over $200 million in illegal transactions, including drug sales, using Bitcoin.
Trump shared the news on Truth Social, revealing that he personally called Ulbricht’s mother to inform her of the decision. The president said that the pardon was granted in honor of her and the libertarian movement, which had supported him. He also criticized those responsible for Ulbricht’s conviction and said “The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of the government against me.”
Background of Ross Ulbricht and Silk Road
Ross Ulbricht, born in 1984, created Silk Road, an online marketplace that operated on the dark web. His platform gained worldwide attention for enabling anonymous, unregulated trade in illegal substances, which ultimately led to his arrest in 2013. Ulbricht was convicted in 2015 on multiple charges, including conspiracy to traffic narcotics, money laundering, and computer hacking, receiving two life sentences without the possibility of parole.
Silk Road’s existence posed challenges to law enforcement, raising questions about digital privacy, free markets, and the balance between technology and regulation. Despite the illegal activities, Ulbricht’s supporters argue that his life sentence was excessively harsh, especially considering his lack of a prior criminal record.
The decision to pardon Ulbricht has sparked mixed reactions, with some praising Trump’s stance on criminal justice reform and others questioning the message it sends regarding accountability for illegal actions. Ulbricht’s case has been a major topic of debate for years, with many in the crypto and libertarian communities advocating for his release.
