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Record $1 billion worth of bitcoin linked to the Silk Road seized by U.S. government
PUBLISHED THU, NOV 5 2020 12:19 PM EST UPDATED 4 HOURS AGO
Kate Rooney
@KR00NEY
Thousands of bitcoins worth $1 billion were seized by law enforcement this week in what the Justice Department said was the largest seizure of cryptocurrency in the history of agency.
The cryptocurrency is linked to sales of illicit drugs and goods on Silk Road, a dark web marketplace that shut down in 2013.
“Silk Road was the most notorious online criminal marketplace of its day,” says U.S. Attorney David Anderson of the Northern District of California. “The successful prosecution of Silk Road’s founder in 2015 left open a billion-dollar question. Where did the money go?”
The U.S. government seized an unprecedented $1 billion worth of bitcoin linked to criminal marketplace, the Silk Road.
Thousands of bitcoins were taken by law enforcement this week, in what the Justice Department said was the largest seizure of cryptocurrency in the history of the agency.
“Silk Road was the most notorious online criminal marketplace of its day,” U.S. Attorney David Anderson of the Northern District of California said in a civil complaint Thursday. “The successful prosecution of Silk Road’s founder in 2015 left open a billion-dollar question. Where did the money go?”
Silk Road allowed people to buy and sell drugs and other illegal goods, and use bitcoin to anonymously fund those transactions. The dark web marketplace was shut down by U.S. federal authorities in 2013 and its founder, Ross Ulbricht, was sentenced to life in prison two years later.
Bitcoin has since taken off as a mainstream investment vehicle in recent years. It climbed above $15,000 on Thursday, hitting the highest level since January 2018. The cryptocurrency has more than doubled year to date.
MORE AT LINK:
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/11/05/1-billion-worth-of-bitcoin-linked-to-the-silk-road-seized-by-the-us.html