The government has filed a motion in the case against Ross Ulbricht, the founder and operator of the Silk Road who is serving life in prison, seeking to retain the seized Bitcoin. At the time of seizure in November 2021, the Bitcoin were notionally worth $3.36 billion. On the date the charges were announced, they would be notionally worth $1.06 billion.
U.S. Attorney convicts individual in 2012 theft from the Silk Road, announces seizure of over 50,000 Bitcoin priced at more than $1 billion
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced that they had convicted James Zhong with wire fraud pertaining to his 2012 theft of around 50,000 Bitcoin from the Silk Road online marketplace. Zhong pled guilty to one count of wire fraud.
- "U.S. Attorney Announces Historic $3.36 Billion Cryptocurrency Seizure And Conviction In Connection With Silk Road Dark Web Fraud", U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York