DOJ seizes bitcoin valued at more than $1B related to Silk Road
Law enforcement officials announced on Thursday that they had seized the largest amount of bitcoins in the history of the Justice Department related to illicit dark web marketplace activity.
Bitcoins valued at more than $1 billion believed to be connected to the notorious Silk Road have been identified for forfeiture, according to U.S. Attorney David L. Anderson of the Northern District of California and Special Agent in Charge Kelly R. Jackson of the IRS Criminal Investigation.
“Silk Road was the most notorious online criminal marketplace of its day,” said U.S. Attorney Anderson. “The successful prosecution of Silk Road’s founder in 2015 left open a billion-dollar question. Where did the money go? Today’s forfeiture complaint answers this open question at least in part. $1 billion of these criminal proceeds are now in the United States’ possession.”
The Justice Department noted that illegal drugs and other unlawful goods and services – including murder for hire – were sold and distributed through the Silk Road to well over 100,000 buyers from 2011 through 2013.
According to the civil complaint, the IRS criminal division analyzed bitcoin transactions related to the Silk Road, identifying more than 50 transactions this year that were previously undetected. The funds were traced to an bitcoin address of an individual who had allegedly hacked the funds from Silk Road.
“Silk Road was the most notorious online criminal marketplace of its day,” said U.S. Attorney Anderson. “The successful prosecution of Silk Road’s founder in 2015 left open a billion-dollar question. Where did the money go? Today’s forfeiture complaint answers this open question at least in part. $1 billion of these criminal proceeds are now in the United States’ possession.”
The Justice Department noted that illegal drugs and other unlawful goods and services – including murder for hire – were sold and distributed through the Silk Road to well over 100,000 buyers from 2011 through 2013.
According to the civil complaint, the IRS criminal division analyzed bitcoin transactions related to the Silk Road, identifying more than 50 transactions this year that were previously undetected. The funds were traced to an bitcoin address of an individual who had allegedly hacked the funds from Silk Road.
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.