President Donald Trump has granted a full and unconditional pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the founder and creator of the dark web marketplace, Silk Road, who was serving two life terms plus 40 years for drug trafficking, money laundering, and computer hacking. Ulbricht’s platform facilitated over $200 million in illicit sales using bitcoin before his arrest in 2013.
Trump’s Promise To The Libertarian National Committee
Trump announced the pardon of the Silk Road founder on his first full day in office, personally calling Ulbricht’s mother to deliver the news ‘in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly’. The president dismissed Ulbricht’s conviction as ‘ridiculous,’ claiming that the prosecutors were ‘some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me’.
The pardon fulfills a campaign promise made during Trump’s appearance at the Libertarian Party National Convention in May 2024. Libertarian activists, who have long viewed Ulbricht as a political prisoner, celebrated the decision, with Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle stating, ‘Ross Ulbricht has been a libertarian political prisoner for more than a decade’.
What Was Silk Road?
According to prosecutors, Silk Road was ‘the most sophisticated and extensive criminal marketplace on the internet,’ where users could anonymously purchase narcotics, fake documents, and other illicit goods. The site was linked to six deaths from drugs purchased through the platform, and Ulbricht was alleged to have sought to have people killed for threatening his business.
Frank Wilson is a retired teacher with over 30 years of combined experience in the education, small business technology, and real estate business. He now blogs as a hobby and spends most days tinkering with old computers. Wilson is passionate about tech, enjoys fishing, and loves drinking beer.
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