In a bold move, former United States President Donald Trump has announced his intention to grant a presidential pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, if he is re-elected in the upcoming November election. Trump made this promise during his speech at the Libertarian Party’s National Convention in Washington on May 25th. He emphasized that Ulbricht has already served 11 years and expressed his determination to bring him back home.
Silk Road, which is widely regarded as the first modern darknet market with a payment system based on Bitcoin (BTC), was launched by Ulbricht in 2011. He operated the platform from his personal laptop using the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts.” However, the laptop was seized by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on October 1st, 2013.
Ulbricht was subsequently convicted in a U.S. federal court in 2015 on multiple charges related to the operations of Silk Road. He received a harsh sentence of two life terms plus forty years without the possibility of parole.
During his speech, Trump also addressed his pro-cryptocurrency stance, which marks a significant change in his position on digital assets earlier this year. He pledged to ensure that the future of crypto, including Bitcoin, is developed within the United States rather than being driven overseas. Additionally, he promised to protect individuals who choose to hold their crypto assets outside of centralized exchanges, asserting their right to self-custody. Trump also took a different tone from his previous remarks by stating that he will keep Elizabeth Warren and her associates away from Bitcoin, contrasting with his previous labeling of Bitcoin as a scam during his presidency.
In other news, a documentary about the collapse of FTX, titled “The $2,500 doco about FTX collapse,” is now available on Amazon Prime, with assistance from the filmmaker’s mother.