FBI Agent Admits to Stealing Silk Road Bitcoins Seized past times U.S. Marshals
Back inward 2015 2 rogue U.S. Secret Service agents, Shaun Bridges in addition to Carl Mark Force, were caught in addition to sentenced to prison theatre for stealing funds acre investigating the kickoff high profile darknet marketplace the Silk Road. Now according to reports, Shaun Bridges plead guilty on August fifteen for moving 1,600 bitcoins of seized bitcoins confiscated past times federal authorities.
Former U.S. Secret Service Agent Shaun Bridges Admits to Stealing 1600 Bitcoins Seized past times the Federal Authorities
The tale of the cloak-and-dagger Silk Road marketplace seems to never end, every bit U.S. prosecutors withdraw keep late charged quondam exceptional agent Shaun Bridges alongside money laundering crimes. According to courtroom documents uploaded to Pacer, Bridges moved 1606.6488 BTC worth US$6.6B at press fourth dimension out of a federal line of piece of occupation organisation human relationship held on Bitstamp. At the fourth dimension the stolen coins were solely worth most a one-half of a million, in addition to according to documents unopen to of the funds moved to the 2 exchanges BTC-e in addition to Bitfinex.
According to Arstechnica, Bridges was willing to response questions in addition to agreed to a plea bargain. William Frentzen, the Assistant the States Attorney, details to the publication that the stolen funds were dispersed betwixt BTC-e, a hardware wallet, in addition to the Bitfinex exchange.
“We would besides try that Mr. Bridges, next the government’s regain that the bitcoin were missing in addition to that they had inward fact been moved, the authorities was able to obtain the bitcoin at Bitfinex,” explained the court’s prosecutor. “And nosotros thence met alongside Mr. Bridges, in addition to through the course of teaching of that fourth dimension nosotros returned the bitcoin.”
Plea Bargains in addition to ‘Keys to the Kingdom’
After the prosecution read their statements, Judge Seeborg asked Bridges if everything that was said to him was true. The quondam federal agent replied past times stating the facts were accurate acre besides admitting he processed the bitcoin transactions shown to him inward court. It’s unclear correct at in 1 lawsuit what sort of plea cope Bridges made alongside the prosecution, exactly he could appear upward 10 years inward prison theatre in addition to a $250,000 fine.
According to Ross Ulbricht’s family, Bridges in addition to Carl Mark Force tainted the entire Silk Road investigation in addition to Ulbricht’s hearing every bit well. Much of the data most the 2 rogue officers were kept hidden from courts fifty-fifty though the Ulbricht identify unit of measurement said the 2 agents had “keys to the Silk Road Kingdom.”
Ulbricht’s defense forcefulness said Force in addition to Bridges had access to Silk Road administrator passwords, they could commandeer accounts, including DPR’s (and human activity every bit DPR), access somebody bitcoin keys, depository fiscal establishment accounts in addition to more. So far, Bridges has admitted to stealing millions of dollars worth of seized bitcoins, stolen earlier the 2 officers were taken into custody. Now Bridges volition appear upward to a greater extent than prison theatre fourth dimension when Judge Seeborg sentences the quondam agent inward the adjacent few months.
Source >>> https://news.bitcoin.com/rogue-silk-road-agent-admits-to-stealing-bitcoins-seized-by-u-s-marshals/