Silk Road programmer pleads guilty

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Last Updated on 24 September 2020 by CryptoTips.eu

Jeroen Kok

Jeroen is one of the lead copywriters on Cryptotips.eu and discusses all recent events in the crypto market. This includes news updates, but also price analyzes and more. He developed his passion for cryptocurrency during the bull run in 2017. He has learned a lot since then. The combination of cryptocurrency and creative writing is perfect for Jeroen and an excellent way to share his knowledge with a wide audience. Find me on LinkedIn / [email protected]
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Although Bitcoin is by now a digital currency with a bright future which is included in several Wall Street firm’s portfolios, its beginnings as a trading mechanism were rather dark. Whatever one’s opinion of the dealing of Silk Road (the now defunct black market that sold drugs and other illegal goods on the internet) it was there that Bitcoin had its first introduction to a large public.

Some 7 years after the notorious site was closed by the FBI and its founder Ross Ulbricht arrested (and sentenced to life imprisonment), another of its contributors fell into the hands of the American justice system.

Ulbricht is by now mostly famous as a technical analyst for Bitcoin, although he has been quite bearish as of late.

This time round, it was programmer Michael R. Weigand who admitted making false statements about the site and his involvement in the past.

In December of this year, the new trial surrounding the Silk Road website will start in New York.

Advertentie.

Bitcoin payment system

The court documents stated that:

The accused assisted Silk Road, among other things, by identifying technological vulnerabilities at the site, providing technological advice directly to the management of Silk Road and by traveling abroad to cover up evidence accusing Silk Road in the residence of a co-conspirator.

Furthermore, the New York prosecutor’s office claim that the darknet website was “specially designed” to allow visitors to buy and sell drugs and other illicit goods and services anonymously. In order to facilitate payment and ensure anonymity, Mr Weigand programmed the site so that it would use a Tor network and a “Bitcoin-based payment system.”

Other sites have been trying to take its place since, such as the illustrious Empire Market which was closed just a month ago.