President Donald Trump pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the drug marketplace Silk Road who is revered by many cryptocurrency enthusiasts and libertarians.
“I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbright to let her know,” Mr. Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, misspelling Ulbricht’s name.
Ulbricht was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole nearly a decade ago. He had created and operated Silk Road on the dark web, turning it into an international drug marketplace that facilitated more than 1.5 million transactions. At his 2015 sentencing, a judge said Ulbricht was “the kingpin of a worldwide digital drug-trafficking enterprise.”
But crypto enthusiasts have long been championing Ulbricht’s release. Silk Road was one of the first platforms where people could use Bitcoin to buy and sell goods. And many thought his was given an overly harsh sentence. Trump, who courted cryptocurrency enthusiasts during his campaign, said last year that he would work to free Ulbricht.
A website dedicated to Ulbricht’s release was updated Wednesday to include a statement attributed to his family. “Our immense gratitude to President Trump for giving Ross a second chance and to all those who have supported us throughout the years,” the statement reads. “From the bottom of our hearts, THANK YOU!”
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