Trump pardons Ross Ulbricht, creator of dark web marketplace Silk Road

Ulbricht was given two life sentences, plus 40 years for running the site, which allegedly facilitated $183m in drug sales.

United States President Donald Trump has pardoned Ross Ulbricht, the imprisoned founder of the dark-web black market Silk Road.

Trump said on Tuesday that he had called Ulbricht’s mother to inform her he had signed a “full and unconditional pardon” for her son, who was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in 2015 for his role in operating the illicit marketplace.

“The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponisation of government against me,” Trump said on his social media platform, Truth Social.

“He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous!”

Ulbricht, 40, was convicted of seven counts related to his operation of Silk Road, which facilitated the sale of illegal drugs and other illicit goods using Bitcoin, including distributing narcotics and engaging in a criminal enterprise.

US prosecutors alleged that the site had been used to facilitate more than 1.5 million transactions worth approximately $213m, including more than $183m in drug sales.

Prosecutors also alleged that Ulbricht, who operated under the alias Dread Pirate Roberts, had solicited the murders of people he viewed as threats to his enterprise, though he was not charged over the alleged murder-for-hire plots and no evidence was presented that anyone had actually been killed.

Sentencing Ulbricht, US District Judge Katherine Forrest said that the California man’s actions had been his “carefully planned life’s work” and that he was “no better a person than any other drug dealer”.

While Ulbricht admitted creating Silk Road, his lawyers argued that he had passed control of his “economic experiment” to others after a few months and had been lured back to take the fall for its true operators just as authorities were closing in.

Ulbricht’s case had been held up as an example of government overreach by libertarians and cryptocurrency enthusiasts, who argued that he was unfairly prosecuted since he had not sold illegal goods himself and was being held responsible for the transactions of people who used the site.

In May, Trump told the national convention of the Libertarian Party, a fringe party that has no representation in the US Congress, that he would commute Ulbricht’s sentence on “day one” of his administration if elected.

After Trump’s election in November, Ulbricht expressed gratitude to those voting for the Republican on his behalf.

“I trust him to honor his pledge and give me a second chance. After 11+ years in darkness, I can finally see the light of freedom at the end of the tunnel,” he said in a post on X.

Thomas Massie, a Republican congressman known for advocating libertarian causes, was among a number of Ulbricht supporters to welcome the news of the pardon.

“Ross Ulbricht has been freed by President Trump with a full pardon! Thank you for keeping your word to me and others who have been advocating for Ross’ freedom, Mr. President!,” Massie, who represents a district in Kentucky, said in a post on X.