The U.S. government has filed a notice indicating its intention to auction off approximately $117 million worth of bitcoin, which was confiscated from individuals including Ryan Farace, a notorious dark web drug dealer associated with the Silk Road. This move represents a significant disposal of seized digital assets in the government’s continued crackdown on illicit online activities.
The notice, dated January 8, revealed plans to sell nearly 2,875 bitcoins that were seized in 2021 from Ryan Farace and Sean Bridges. Additionally, around 59 bitcoins belonging solely to Farace are also slated for disposal. At the time of the filing, the total value of these bitcoins was estimated to be around $133 million.
Farace, infamously known as Xanaxman, was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2018 for his illegal sale of Xanax on the dark web. The DOJ’s statement from that period highlighted that Farace distributed drugs in exchange for bitcoin, leveraging the anonymity provided by the dark web. Earlier this month, it was reported that both Ryan Farace and his father, Joseph Farace, were sentenced to prison terms for their involvement in a money laundering conspiracy.
The plea deal revealed Farace’s use of the Silk Road, a notorious dark web marketplace, for his drug dealings. The U.S. government’s recent statement announcing the intent to sell the confiscated bitcoin also opened a 60-day window for anyone wishing to claim an interest in the forfeited property.
In a related development, a U.S. appeals court recently finalized the forfeiture of 69,370 bitcoins connected to the now-defunct Silk Road dark web market, which market observers have closely monitored. There has been considerable speculation about how such a large-scale disposal of bitcoins by the U.S. government could affect the cryptocurrency’s market price.
Ross Ulbricht, the founder of Silk Road, is currently serving a life sentence in prison. His operation of the dark web site, which facilitated the sale of drugs and weapons from 2011 to 2013, came to an end following his arrest by the Federal Bureau of Investigation in late 2013.
Read more about Ross Ulbricht here on FinTelegram.
This impending auction of the seized bitcoins by the U.S. government is a clear indication of the authorities’ commitment to combating illegal activities on the dark web and highlights the ongoing challenges in regulating the complex world of cryptocurrencies.
