Ross Ulbricht

[JohnCommode]

I've watched all six episodes of the "Free Ross" videos and two of the documentaries that generally support the government's narrative. This is a complex case to say the least.

1) The most disturbing part of this case is the unprosecuted murder for hire. It always troubled me that this kid just did not seem like the type for this kind of violent crime, but Mt. Gox scumbag Mark Carpeles plus the two rogue agents seem like perfect candidates for that sort of thing.

2) While I'm in favor of the decriminalization of drugs, this site allowed minors to easily buy drugs as long as they could get their hands on BTC.

3) He's not likely to get out without a presidential pardon by a departing president. Trump is an unlikely prospect and Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer was the most vocal advocate against Silk Road and a Democratic president might not wish to seem soft on a "drug kingpin". Maybe if Rand Paul wins the presidency?

[DonaldTrumpsHairPiece]

I'm not even going to bother to watch the "free ross" videos.

When a story starts, sure I broke the law but.... I'm out. Technical issues, bad cops, cry me a river you still did the crime.

What's next, Ted Bundy killed a bunch of young adults.... but

[tgull]

Polymarket has a 77% chance of Ross getting a pardon. I am totally against this. He was effectively an enormous drug dealer and actually ordered hits, while not carried out as part of a sting, still he ordered them. I don't mind Hunter getting a pardon, he really only affected himself, but pardoning a notorious drug dealer is just not the right path. It's not like Ross was caught off guard, he went to great length to conceal his tracks.

[desertrunner]

No idea who the guy in prison is, but Trump knows him...

Embedded Tweet

https://twitter.com/RealRossU/status/1817694204560314854

[Tellafriend]

Polymarket has a 77% chance of Ross getting a pardon. I am totally against this. He was effectively an enormous drug dealer and actually ordered hits, while not carried out as part of a sting, still he ordered them. I don't mind Hunter getting a pardon, he really only affected himself, but pardoning a notorious drug dealer is just not the right path. It's not like Ross was caught off guard, he went to great length to conceal his tracks.

right and wrong. they both deserve prison. if you or i, we would be forever buried in a federal pen.

[Sheesfaced]

Listening to the American Kingpin book on tape during early COVID walks with my dog and my sons in a stroller. That might be my fondest memory during those early days. Definitely went on some longer walks just to keep listening to the book. Poor dog was subjected to longer walks than she was use too.

Can remember who linked the YouTube of the book on tape but it was definitely someone on this site and I’m thinking it was Sanimar.

[Tellafriend]

Listening to the American Kingpin book on tape during early COVID walks with my dog and my sons in a stroller. That might be my fondest memory during those early days. Definitely went on some longer walks just to keep listening to the book. Poor dog was subjected to longer walks than she was use too.

Can remember who linked the YouTube of the book on tape but it was definitely someone on this site and I’m thinking it was Sanimar.

ha, me too. had my wife listen after i did and she loved it too.

also can't recall who suggested it, but would love to give him the proper credit......

[Deal]

Ross has done his time and was only busted due to illegal FBI entrapment schemes (murder for hire) that they didn't prosecute him for.

Trump showed up to the Libertarian National convention and promised that if they supported him he would pardon Ross, and put a libertarian in his cabinet. The vast majority of libertarian voters did vote Trump. In part because they did not want to be the spoilers that put Kamala into office, an even worse candidate than Trump.

In the swing states alone the libertarian vote of 2020 was close to the margin of victory in 2024. Those voters switched to Trump and the libertarian candidate got historically low votes.

It was a brilliant move by Team Trump to show up in person and ask for their support. It worked and a pardon is expected.

[Dan Druff]

I'm generally with sonatine on this one.

The murder-for-hire plot makes him a totally unsympathetic character, even though nobody got hurt. As for as Ulbricht believed, he was really paying to have someone whacked. He didn't realize he was dealing with a scammer instead of a real hitman.

Now, if Ulbricht was innocent here, and someone else hired the (fake) hitman, then I would be a lot more open to freeing Ulbricht. From there it becomes complicated, because he wasn't directly a drug dealer. He did, however, knowingly run a black market system where he profited via the sale of illegal drugs and illegal guns.

I still don't think that deserves the sentence he got, but if the murder-for-hire thing was real (which I think it was), then I'm okay with this life sentence.

Ulbricht has become a libertaran/cryptobro hero, though, and Trump is trying to win over that community. So yeah, he probably does get pardoned.

[tigerpiper]

The creation of a crime to catch a criminal just catches me as very 1984. Happened to a lot of Muslims post 911.

If I was a right winger, which I very much am not, I would be more concerned with stopping actual crime than additional over the top imagined crime.

[Deal]

I still don't think that deserves the sentence he got, but if the murder-for-hire thing was real (which I think it was), then I'm okay with this life sentence.

If it was real and not a Whitmer kidnapping entrapment style FBI plot then why in the hell didn't they charge him accordingly?

It's total BS to charge him for a minor crime but sentence him for a fabricated media story.

[gut]

Polymarket has a 77% chance of Ross getting a pardon. I am totally against this. He was effectively an enormous drug dealer and actually ordered hits, while not carried out as part of a sting, still he ordered them. I don't mind Hunter getting a pardon, he really only affected himself, but pardoning a notorious drug dealer is just not the right path. It's not like Ross was caught off guard, he went to great length to conceal his tracks.

Hunter only affected himself while on the Burisma board?

Interesting take.

[Sanlmar]

Listening to the American Kingpin book on tape during early COVID walks with my dog and my sons in a stroller. That might be my fondest memory during those early days. Definitely went on some longer walks just to keep listening to the book. Poor dog was subjected to longer walks than she was use too.

Can remember who linked the YouTube of the book on tape but it was definitely someone on this site and I’m thinking it was Sanimar.

What a great book. What a great memory for you.

[Krypt]

I passed on sanlmar's audiobook recommendation to my dentist; he never read or listened to it, fucking bastard...

[Sanlmar]

I passed on sanlmar's audiobook recommendation to my dentist; he never read or listened to it, fucking bastard...

“Antiguan Minster of Bitcoin”
- Drexel

It’s prolly next to impossible to find a good dentist on the island. Imagine having to go through Customs every time you have a toothache

[Sloppy Joe]

I'm generally with sonatine on this one.

The murder-for-hire plot makes him a totally unsympathetic character, even though nobody got hurt. As for as Ulbricht believed, he was really paying to have someone whacked. He didn't realize he was dealing with a scammer instead of a real hitman.

Now, if Ulbricht was innocent here, and someone else hired the (fake) hitman, then I would be a lot more open to freeing Ulbricht. From there it becomes complicated, because he wasn't directly a drug dealer. He did, however, knowingly run a black market system where he profited via the sale of illegal drugs and illegal guns.

I still don't think that deserves the sentence he got, but if the murder-for-hire thing was real (which I think it was), then I'm okay with this life sentence.

Ulbricht has become a libertaran/cryptobro hero, though, and Trump is trying to win over that community. So yeah, he probably does get pardoned.

Also, Micon likes him.

[tgull]

Did not take long, full pardon. Ross will have a meme coin this time next month and probably be worth $100M.

[Sloppy Joe]

I'm generally with sonatine on this one.

The murder-for-hire plot makes him a totally unsympathetic character, even though nobody got hurt. As for as Ulbricht believed, he was really paying to have someone whacked. He didn't realize he was dealing with a scammer instead of a real hitman.

Now, if Ulbricht was innocent here, and someone else hired the (fake) hitman, then I would be a lot more open to freeing Ulbricht. From there it becomes complicated, because he wasn't directly a drug dealer. He did, however, knowingly run a black market system where he profited via the sale of illegal drugs and illegal guns.

I still don't think that deserves the sentence he got, but if the murder-for-hire thing was real (which I think it was), then I'm okay with this life sentence.

Ulbricht has become a libertaran/cryptobro hero, though, and Trump is trying to win over that community. So yeah, he probably does get pardoned.

Also, Micon likes him.

[Dan Druff]

In case you're wondering why the Owens GIF, Ulbricht was pardoned today.

Again, I don't agree with this, because of the murder-for-hire thing, which I believe to be real. Had it not been for that, I'd say that Ulbricht did enough time for the crimes he committed, and wouldn't be against him being released.

Regarding Micon, I haven't looked how he feels about this, and I don't care. Micon has actually moved a lot more to the right in the past decade or so. He's now a right leaning libertarian, whereas when we were friends, he was a left-leaning libertarian. Ironically we agree a lot more politically now than when we were friends.

Of course, that doesn't mean much. Six Toed Pete also agrees with much of what I believe politically.

[VaughnP]

“The government did not produce a single witness to testify firsthand that Ross authored any of the communications attributable to DPR. It was all digital, created and transmitted on an anonymous, untraceable internet network.”
– Joshua Dratel, Criminal Defense Attorney
It was never proven that Ross was the one who authored any of the online anonymous chats and text files the allegations relied on. There is hard evidence and testimony—even from the lead Silk Road investigator—showing that multiple people operated the top administrator account under the Dread Pirate Roberts (“DPR” for short) handle.

Corrupt agents Carl Force (left) & Shaun Bridges (right)
Unprosecuted and now dismissed, the only allegation of murder-for-hire ever filed against Ross was filed in Maryland, where rampant corruption occurred during the Silk Road investigation. The indictment was based on information provided by corrupt federal agent Carl Mark Force, who had unfettered access to Silk Road and admittedly took over accounts and “sought deliberately to undermine the integrity of the ongoing investigation.”[5][6] Carl Force and Shaun Bridges, another corrupt agent, had full admin privileges to Silk Road, meaning they could usurp control of any account, including that of DPR, and change anything in the Silk Road database, such as forum posts and chat messages.[7][8] Both Force and Bridges were sent to prison for their crimes related to the Silk Road investigation.

The entire public perception people have of the guy and his case stems from the alleged murder for hire attempts that were never in any way proven to be credible and of course were spearheaded by two corrupt federal agents.