What just happened? Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the once-infamous dark web drug marketplace Silk Road, has been given a full pardon by President Donald Trump. Ulbricht, 40, had been serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole since being sentenced in 2015, and has been behind bars since 2013.
In a post on his Truth Social network, Trump wrote, "The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous."
Trump said he called Ulbricht's mother to let her know that he was signing the pardon in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which he said had supported the president strongly.
"Ross Ulbricht has been a libertarian political prisoner for more than a decade. I'm proud to say that saving his life has been one of our top priorities and that has finally paid off," said Angela McArdle, the chair of the Libertarian National Committee.
Launched in February 2011, Silk Road, which used the Tor network, grew into an enormous drug market worth $1.2 billion. Its size and the money it generated, via Bitcoin payments, put Silk Road on the radar of law enforcement, which began a search to uncover The Dread Pirate Roberts's identity. The name – taken from The Princess Bride book/movie – was used by Ulbricht while running his business empire.
Prosecutors said Ulbricht collected $18 million in Bitcoin through commissions during the three years he ran Silk Road. It's estimated that around 30% of the marketplace's one million registered users were based in the US.
Ulbricht was caught in 2013 and charged with computer fraud, money laundering, and drug offenses. He was also accused of hiring people to kill five Silk Road users for stealing from the site and trying to blackmail him by revealing his true identity, but no evidence of murders was found. Ulbricht was convicted after a four-week jury trial.
In November, a few days after Trump was elected president, Ulbricht posted a message on X that he dictated to his wife from prison.
"Immense gratitude to everyone who voted for President Trump on my behalf. I trust him to honor his pledge and give me a second chance," it read.
Immense gratitude to everyone who voted for President Trump on my behalf. I trust him to honor his pledge and give me a second chance.
– Ross Ulbricht (@RealRossU) November 12, 2024
After 11+ years in darkness, I can finally see the light of freedom at the end of the tunnel. Thank you so much, @realDonaldTrump 🙏
It's unclear exactly when Ulbricht will be released from the federal prison in Arizona where he is currently incarcerated.
In 2020, near the end of his first term in office, it was reported that Trump could pardon Ulbricht before departing the White House. Sources said that Trump reviewed documents related to Ulbricht's case and expressed sympathy for his situation. Trump did pardon 73 people and commute the sentences of another 70 as one of his final acts, but Ulbricht was not among them.
Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht given full pardon by Donald Trump
