Ross Ulbricht
| Ross Ulbricht | |
|---|---|
| Born: | March 27, 1984 Austin, Texas
|
| Charges: | Seven federal counts: distributing narcotics; distributing narcotics by means of the Internet; conspiring to distribute narcotics; engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise; conspiring to commit computer hacking; conspiring to traffic in fraudulent identity documents; and conspiring to commit money laundering |
| Sentence: | Double life imprisonment plus 40 years, without possibility of parole (concurrent), and approx. $183 million in restitution; imposed May 29, 2015 |
| Released: | January 21, 2025 (presidential pardon) |
| Facility: | USP Tucson (high-security) |
| Status: | Released, granted a full and unconditional presidential pardon by President Donald Trump on January 21, 2025; no longer incarcerated |
Ross William Ulbricht (born March 27, 1984) is an American who created and operated the dark-web marketplace Silk Road. From 2011 to 2013, the site ran as a Tor hidden service and used Bitcoin to enable the anonymous sale of illegal drugs and other contraband, with Ulbricht operating under the pseudonym "Dread Pirate Roberts." In February 2015, a federal jury in the Southern District of New York convicted him on seven counts. On May 29, 2015, Judge Katherine B. Forrest sentenced him to double life imprisonment plus 40 years without parole. He was held in federal custody for roughly 11 years, most recently at the high-security USP Tucson in Arizona. On January 21, 2025, President Donald Trump granted him a full and unconditional pardon, and he was released from prison that evening.
Early Life and Career
Ross Ulbricht was born on March 27, 1984, in Austin, Texas, where he was raised. He earned a bachelor's degree in physics from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2006 on a full academic scholarship. He later received a scholarship to attend Pennsylvania State University for a master's program in materials science and engineering, where he studied crystallography.
Criminal Case
Ulbricht founded and ran Silk Road, an online marketplace operating on the Tor network that used Bitcoin for anonymous transactions. The site was active from roughly January 2011 to October 2013. He operated the site under the alias 'Dread Pirate Roberts'. Federal prosecutors stated that the marketplace facilitated more than $200 million in illegal sales, and commission figures attributed to Ulbricht were reported in the range of roughly $13 million to $18 million. He was arrested on October 1, 2013, at a public library in San Francisco, where agents seized his laptop while he was logged in.[1] A federal grand jury in the Southern District of New York returned an indictment on February 4, 2014 (14 Cr. 68), followed by a superseding indictment (S1 14 Cr. 68) on August 21, 2014.[2]
Trial and Sentencing
After a roughly four week jury trial in Manhattan federal court in the Southern District of New York, Ulbricht was convicted on all seven federal counts in February 2015.[3] His charges included distributing narcotics, distributing narcotics by means of the Internet, conspiring to distribute narcotics, engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiring to commit computer hacking, conspiring to traffic in fraudulent identity documents, and conspiring to commit money laundering. On May 29, 2015, U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest sentenced him to two life terms plus 40 years, to run concurrently, without the possibility of parole.[4] He was also ordered to pay approximately $183 million in restitution, based on total sales of drugs and counterfeit IDs through Silk Road. His conviction was affirmed on appeal by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in 2017.
Incarceration
During his trial, Ulbricht was held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York. He was later transferred among high-security facilities, including USP Florence High in Colorado, where he was reported held from around July 2017. In January 2019, he was transferred to USP Tucson (high-security), a high-security U.S. Penitentiary in Tucson, Arizona, under BOP register number 18870-111. He remained there for the balance of his sentence, and this location is confirmed as his final facility. Following a presidential pardon, he was released directly from federal prison in Arizona on the evening of January 21, 2025, after spending roughly 11 years in custody.
Release and Aftermath
On January 21, 2025, his first full day back in office, President Donald Trump granted Ulbricht a full and unconditional pardon.[5][6] Trump had promised the pardon during a speech at the 2024 Libertarian National Convention. Ulbricht was released from USP Tucson that evening and reunited with his family, with images of the reunion subsequently circulating on social media.[7] The pardon drew criticism from some lawmakers, who noted prosecutors' allegations tying the marketplace to overdose deaths and to solicitations of murder for hire, which were charges for which Ulbricht was never tried.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What did Ross Ulbricht do?
He created and ran Silk Road, an anonymous dark-web marketplace on the Tor network that used Bitcoin to facilitate the sale of illegal drugs and other contraband from 2011 to 2013, operating under the alias 'Dread Pirate Roberts.' A federal jury convicted him in 2015 on seven counts, including narcotics distribution, running a continuing criminal enterprise, computer-hacking conspiracy, and money laundering.
Q: How long was Ross Ulbricht's sentence?
On May 29, 2015, he was sentenced to double life imprisonment plus 40 years, without the possibility of parole, and ordered to pay approximately $183 million in restitution. He ultimately served about 11 years before being pardoned.
Q: Where was Ross Ulbricht incarcerated?
He was held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York during his trial, later at USP Florence High in Colorado, and from January 2019 at the high-security USP Tucson in Arizona (register number 18870-111), where he remained until his release.
Q: When was Ross Ulbricht released?
He was released on January 21, 2025, after President Donald Trump granted him a full and unconditional pardon. He walked out of federal prison in Arizona that same evening.
Q: Who was the judge and what was the case number?
The case was United States v. Ulbricht, 1:14-cr-00068, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, presided over by U.S. District Judge Katherine B. Forrest.
See also
References
- ↑ "Ross Ulbricht, aka Dread Pirate Roberts, Sentenced to Life in Federal Prison for Creating, Operating 'Silk Road' Website". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "United States v. Ulbricht, 1:14-cr-00068 (docket)". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "Jury Convicts Ross Ulbricht Of Operating Drug Marketplace". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "Ross Ulbricht, A/K/A 'Dread Pirate Roberts,' Sentenced In Manhattan Federal Court To Life In Prison". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "Trump pardons Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "Trump pardons Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht". '. Retrieved .
- ↑ "Trump pardons Ross Ulbricht, creator of the Silk Road dark web marketplace". '. Retrieved .