Silk Road’s mastermind Ross Ulbricht takes case to US Court of Appeals

Maria Nikolova

Dread Pirate Roberts appeals Judge Katherine B. Forrest’s decisions to deny his requests to submit his Rule 33 Motion for a new trial based on newly discovered evidence.

Ross William Ulbricht, also known as Dread Pirate Roberts, the mastermind of Silk Road, the notorious marketplace that used Bitcoins for its transactions, is appealing a number of recent decisions by Judge Katherine B. Forrest of the New York Southern District Court.

Ulbricht appeals the decisions of Judge Forrest dated February 5, 2018 and February 21, 2018. In these instances, the Judge denied the motion to extend time for a Rule 33 motion and a petition for a rehearing . Explaining her motives for making the judgement, Judge Katherine B. Forrest said: “A rule 33 motion is not an opportunity to re-litigate that which has been litigated, or to engage in a fishing expedition for new evidence”.

She noted the transcript reveals that the very evidence to which the defendant points (that the FBI was monitoring the defendant’s online movements) was explicitly known at the trial. “This is not new news”, the Judge said. No good cause to delay the deadline has been shown, she concluded.

Ulbricht believes that the court has misapprehended, overlooked, or misapplied certain facts and pertinent law. According to him, the court is mistaken in not noting that the evidence the defendant brought to the court’s attention is, in fact, new evidence that was neither disclosed nor known to exist at the time of trial.

What was not known prior to trial, according to Ulbricht’s counsel, was that the US government was using unauthorized surveillance tools to track Ulbricht’s physical movements and location within his residence. Also, the defendant’s counsel says that the government did have additional and material FBI-collected PRTT data (pen register and trap and trace data), evidence that was material to the preparation of the defense because it is data the government relied on in its applications for the laptop and residence search warrants.

The extension of time was requested in order to obtain and examine pen register and trap and trace data.

The Notice of Appeal filed by Ulbricht states that he appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from the Orders denying the extension of time and denying the petition for rehearing of his case.

Ulbricht got a life imprisonment sentence in February 2015. Silk Road operated using the Tor Network and the marketplace users mainly bought and sold drugs, false identification documents, and computer hacking software. Transactions on Silk Road used Bitcoins, favoured because of the anonymity it grants.

Read this next

Institutional FX

OpenYield launches “cheap and easy” fixed income trading for brokers

“We’re on a mission to make bonds cheap and easy to trade, and are excited about the opportunity to build generational capital markets infrastructure.”

Digital Assets

Sumsub and Mercuryo publish a guide for VASPs: “Mastering Travel Rule Compliance”

“At Sumsub, we’ve concentrated our efforts on filling the gap in understanding the complexity of Travel Rule regulation and helping organizations find the best solution to stay safe and compliant while minimizing costs and avoiding potential risks of non-compliance. This guide we created with Mercuryo, our trusted partner, is the ultimate navigation tool all VASPs can consult.”

Digital Assets

Bitget Wallet Leads with Record Swap Volume & New Crypto Innovations

This week, Bitget Wallet achieved a milestone by surpassing Metamask with a record 388,757 Swap order transactions, securing the global lead. The significant 7-day trading volume, almost 68,000 more than its rival, underscores its liquidity and user trust. This robust activity signals Bitget Wallet’s prominent role and reliability in the dynamic crypto market.

Digital Assets

Embarking on a Digital Currency Journey

Imagine you’ve stumbled upon a treasure map, leading you to untold riches hidden in the vastness of the internet. Instead of gold coins and jewel-encrusted goblets, this treasure comes in the form of digital currencies, the modern-day loot coveted by many.

Reviews

Traders Union Experts Share The Trading Analyst Review For 2024

Navigating options trading in rapidly shifting markets poses a considerable challenge. This is where options trading alert services become invaluable. They aid traders in keeping abreast of evolving opportunities and market trends. In this assessment, Traders Union experts scrutinize The Trading Analyst alert service to ascertain its efficacy. 

Digital Assets

BlockDAG’s Presale Achieves $9.9M: Aiming For A 5000-Fold ROI As Cardano’s Price Rises And Fantom Launches Sonic

Explore Cardano’s surge, Sonic’s efficiency, and why BlockDAG’s growth makes it the top crypto choice. A deep dive into the future of blockchain investments.

Digital Assets

US, UK probe $20 billion Tether transfers tied to Russian exchange.

U.S. and UK authorities are investigating the movement of $20 billion in the USD-pegged stablecoin tether (USDT) through Moscow-based exchange Garantex.

Digital Assets

BlockDAG Presale Raises $9.9M as Batch 5 Nears Sell-Out Amid Bonk’s Fluctuating Trading Volume & Spell’s Bullish Price

Explore BONK’s trading volume, SPELL’s market shifts, and why BlockDAG’s 10,000 ROI makes it an ideal crypto for savvy investors in 2024.

Digital Assets

Bybit expands into Europe amid regulatory scrutiny

Dubai-based cryptocurrency exchange Bybit is expanding its operations in Europe after encountering regulatory challenges in Hong Kong.

<