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Over $3 billion worth in bitcoin seized by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), belonging to Silk Road, are likely linked to a former U.S. Secret Service agent. The latest findings suggest that “Individual X” is, in fact, Shaun Bridges.
Bridges Is Set to Be Freed in November
Per recent court filings, cited by Fortune, the 69,370 bitcoins taken by the law enforcement also have possible ties with Carl Mark Force IV, a former official from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). Both agents were part of the investigations related to the now-defunct darknet marketplace.
Although the report cannot be taken as a legal confirmation of Bridges’ relation with the BTC seized, Fortune pointed out that some clues in a DOJ statement shed some light about it:
Individual X was able to hack into Silk Road and gain unauthorized and illegal access to Silk Road and thereby steal the illicit cryptocurrency.
It’s worth noting that the disgraced U.S. Secret Service agent was convicted for using an informant’s credentials in the Silk Road case to steal BTC from the vendors. He got a sentence of 71 months in prison in 2015.
Afterward, Bridges served an additional two-year sentence in 2017 after pleading guilty to money laundering charges. He’s expected to be a free man in November 2021, as he’s still in a Nashville federal prison.
Disgraced US Agent Likely Has Secret Crypto Wallets
However, more clues arose during the whole case after some reports made the headlines in 2016. Bridges planned unsuccessfully to flee the country, as he tried to apply for citizenship in foreign countries.
Fortune says such a flight plan could suggest that he might have other secret crypto wallets to fund its escape.
As of now, the “Individual X” wallet contains a similar amount — of the BTC seized — in other cryptos such as bitcoin cash (BCH), bitcoin gold (BTG), and bitcoinsv (BSV).
According to court filings, Ross Ulbricht — who the U.S. government claims is the mastermind behind Silk Road and currently spends a double life imprisonment sentence — stated that he wouldn’t take any legal claims BTC seized.
Our newsdesk published in November 2020 an in-depth outlook about the Silk Road bitcoin address that was seized by the U.S. authorities.
What do you think about a possible link between disgraced Secret Service agent and Silk Road’s bitcoins seized? Let us know in the comments section below.
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons
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