Officials from the United States Department of Justice have penned a letter opposing the plea of former Ethereum developer Virgil Griffith to shorten his sentence for violating sanctions on North Korea in 2022.
In a legal filing on June 17 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams contended that Griffith’s request to reduce his sentence to a minimum of 51 months should be rejected. Griffith had been sentenced to 63 months in prison and fined $100,000 in April 2022, with his anticipated release date set for January 2026, factoring in time served prior to the sentencing.
Williams stated, “Griffith made a conscious decision to circumvent U.S. sanctions in order to assist a hostile foreign power by promoting the use of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to evade U.S. and United Nations sanctions.” He continued, “Despite being aware of North Korea’s human rights abuses and threats against the U.S., including its nuclear capabilities, Griffith proceeded with his actions.”
Griffith had delivered presentations at a cryptocurrency and blockchain conference in Pyongyang, North Korea, in 2019, advocating for the country’s use of crypto to bypass sanctions and engage in money laundering. His defense team claimed in court that he suffered from obsessive-compulsive and narcissistic personality disorders, which fueled his fixation on North Korea.
In addition to his legal troubles, Griffith faced allegations of petty theft while incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution in Milan, Michigan. Prosecutors mentioned instances where he was disciplined for attempting to steal items like soap and tea from the facility.
Following his conviction, Griffith’s lawyers requested a sentence revision based on updated U.S. sentencing guidelines. The revised guidelines could potentially reduce his prison term to as little as 51 months, making him eligible for release in January 2025.
At his sentencing hearing, Griffith asserted that he had overcome his obsession with North Korea, drawing parallels to sanctions imposed on Russia in response to its actions in Ukraine. Judge Kevin Castel remarked that Griffith appeared to lack a clear ideology and was willing to align with different sides for personal gain.
Griffith’s legal team is expected to respond to the Department of Justice’s letter within two weeks. Regardless of the outcome, the Department of Commerce has already imposed a 10-year export ban on Griffith, prohibiting him from engaging in transactions involving commodities, software, or technology under U.S. export regulations until 2032.
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