Ulbricht was given two life sentences, including 40 years for running the facility, which allegedly facilitated $183m in drug sales.
United States President Donald Trump has pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the jailed founder of the Silk Road black market.
Trump said Tuesday that he called Ulbricht's mother to let her know he had signed a “full and unconditional pardon” for her son, who was. he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2015 for his role in running the illegal market.
“The evil that brought him to justice is the same lunatics that used the modern weapons of government against me,” Trump said on his social media site, Truth Social.
“He was given a life sentence, plus 40 years. Stupid!”
Ulbricht, 40, was found guilty of seven charges related to his Silk Road operation, which facilitated the sale of drugs and other illicit goods using Bitcoin, including drug distribution and involvement in organized crime.
US prosecutors said that the facility was used to support more than 1.5 million dollars worth of about $213m, including more than $183m in drug sales.
Prosecutors also alleged that Ulbricht, who operated under the name Dread Pirate Roberts, solicited the killings of people he considered a threat to his business, even though he had not been charged with the murders and there was no evidence that anyone else was involved. he had really been killed.
In sentencing Ulbricht, US District Judge Katherine Forrest said that what the Californian did was “a well-planned life's work” and that he was “no better than a drug dealer”.
While Ulbricht admitted to creating Silk Road, his lawyers argued that he managed to “experiment financially” with others months later and was lured back to his collaborators as authorities closed in.
Ulbricht's case was presented as an example of government expropriation by libertarians and cryptocurrency, who said they were unfairly prosecuted because they did not sell illegal goods and were blamed for what people used the site for.
In May, Trump told the national convention of the Libertarian Party, which has no representative in the US Congress, that he would reverse Ulbricht's decision on “day one” of his presidency if elected.
After Trump's election in November, Ulbricht praised those who voted Republican instead.
“I hope he will fulfill his promise and give me a second chance. After 11+ years in the dark, I can see the light of freedom at the end of the road,” he said in a post on X.
Thomas Massie, a Republican congressman who is known for promoting human rights, was among Ulbricht's supporters to receive news of the pardon.
“Ross Ulbricht has been released by President Trump with a full pardon! Thank you for keeping your word to me and others who have been advocating for Ross's freedom, President!,” Massie, who represents the state of Kentucky, said in a tweet on X.