The United States has announced the second-largest cryptocurrency seizure to date. The United States Department of Justice has seized 50,676 Bitcoin ($3.36 billion) from James Zhong.
Zhong, who confesses to one count of wire fraud, stole the Bitcoin fortune ten years ago from the now-defunct Silk Road marketplace.
The Bitcoin OG stole the funds by swindling “Silk Road’s withdrawal-processing system.” The hacker in question was known as “Loader” on the BitcoinTalk forum, according to BitMEX Research. He once attempted to make a bet with well-known Bitcoin Cash supporter Roger Ver on this forum.
Zhong appeared to live a lavish lifestyle, posting pictures of himself with yachts and planes.
Notably, this is the second-largest Bitcoin seizure by the US government to date. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) shut down the Silk Road marketplace in 2013.
The marketplace’s creator, Ross William Ulbricht, received a sentence of two life terms plus forty years. The largest cryptocurrency seizure to date occurred in 2020 when the US government seized 69,369 bitcoins from the Silk Road marketplace, which were then valued at $1 billion.
Currently, the US government owns bitcoin worth about $4.5 billion. It should be noted, though, that the government must still convince the judge of its validity before it can take permanent control of the latest coins.
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