Authorities have already sold nearly 10,000 BTC of the 50,000 seized Bitcoin linked to Silk Road.
The U.S. government will liquidate 41,490 bitcoins in four batches throughout 2023, a court filing shows.
The bitcoin was first seized in November 2021 following the arrest of James Zhong – the man who stole 50,000 BTC from darknet marketplace Silk Road.
The filing reveals the government already sold 9,861.17 bitcoin (BTC) for almost $216 million on March 14, 2023.
The ruling outlined: “On March 14, 2023, the Government sold 9,861.1707894 BTC (of the 51,351.89785803 BTC) for a total of $215,738,154.98. After $215,738.15 in transaction fees, the net proceeds to the Government were $215,522,416.83.
“Of the Bitcoin forfeited in the Ulbricht case, there remains approximately 41,490.72 BTC, which the Government understands is expected to be liquidated in four more batches over the course of this calendar year.”
Authorities seized the Bitcoin from the residence of James Zhong. It was found hidden away in an underground floor safe on a single-board computer that was “submerged under blankets in a popcorn tin stored in a bathroom closet,” according to the ruling.
Silk Road was active from 2011-2013. The site enabled users to use Bitcoin to purchase drugs and other illicit goods and services, including computer hacking and forged identity documents.
Zhong didn’t buy or sell items on Silk Road: he stole the bitcoins by manipulating the site’s withdrawal system, triggering 140 transactions into ‘fraud accounts’ over the course of several days.
It’s unclear whether the US bitcoin sell-off will impact the price bitcoin, but as of April 1, buyers seem unconcerned.
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