$2 Billion in Seized Bitcoin Linked to Silk Road Moved to a New Wallet by U.S. Authorities
Summary:
Around $2 billion in Bitcoin, linked to the Silk Road platform and previously seized by U.S. authorities, has been transferred to a new digital wallet. This wallet is believed to be under the control of the U.S. Justice Department. The Bitcoins were confiscated from James Zhong, who was convicted in 2022 for illegally acquiring cryptocurrency from Silk Road. This story is still emerging and new details will be shared as they surface.
Approximately $2 billion in Bitcoin (BTC), formerly apprehended by the U.S. authorities and tied to the Silk Road platform, has been relocated to a new digital wallet. As per blockchain records dated April 2, a wallet believed to be under the U.S. Justice Department's control transferred 0.001 Bitcoin to a Coinbase Prime address, likely as a trial transaction. Immediately following this, the same digital wallet moved 30,174 BTC, equivalent to around $2 billion at the time, to a different wallet. Internet investigators recognized the Justice Department's wallet as the one holding Bitcoin confiscated from James Zhong, who was found guilty in 2022 of offenses related to illegally acquired cryptocurrency from Silk Road.
In 2012, Zhong pilfered over 50,000 BTC from Silk Road. During a raid on his residence in 2021, U.S. officials found hardware wallets storing Bitcoins, with one literally hidden "beneath blankets, inside a popcorn tin" on a single-board computer. The majority of the confiscated digital currency was transferred to the same wallet that moved more than 30,000 BTC on April 2. The story is still unfolding, and more details will be shared as they come to light.
Published At
4/2/2024 7:56:28 PM
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