Alleged Silk Road owner put on trial

The trial of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged creator and operator of the Silk Road underground market, begins today. Jury selection, the first stage of the trial which could last six weeks, will start in a Manhattan federal court. Mr Ulbricht is accused by the US of making millions from the Silk Road where drugs and other illegal commodities were bought and sold. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against him and has never admitted that he ran the site. Hidden site The charges against Mr bricht include accusations of operating a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiring to commit narcotics trafficking, money laundering and computer hacking. He could face life in prison if found guilty on all charges. Mr Ulbricht is also accused of soliciting murders to help silence people who knew about the site and his involvement with it. There is no evidence that any of the murders were carried out. The New York trial will not deal with the murder plot charges but evidence relating to them will be presented in court. The Silk Road shut down in October 2013 following raids by the FBI and other US law enforcement agencies. The market operated from January 2011 to late 2013 during which time, the US alleges, tens of thousands of people used it to trade many different types of drugs, acquire forged documents and buy and sell hacking services. The judge presiding over the trial wrote in documents released before the case began that the Silk Road was an "online criminal enterprise of enormous scope" that could generate tens of millions of dollars in revenue. The Silk Road operated as a "hidden service" on the Tor dark web network allowing people to use it anonymously. Anonymity was also aided by payments for drugs and other services being carried out in bitcoins. More than 29,000 bitcoins seized during the 2013 raid were sold by US marshals in June this year for $17m (£11m).The FBI is believed to be in possession of a larger hoard of bitcoins seized from the site. Mr Ulbricht's family and friends have set up a website to help defend him saying he is innocent of all charges and had nothing to do with the Silk Road and its operation. A documentary called Deep Web has been made about the case, Mr Ulbricht's treatment and how the FBI tracked him down. It is due to be shown later this year. Supporters say the case has serious implications for online freedom because of the way it has been handled. Since the Silk Road shut down, other hidden sites have sprung up to take its place. One, called Silk Road 2.0, has been shut down due to raids by law enforcement agencies and the arrest of the man believed to be its operator.

Alleged Silk Road owner put on trial 2015-01-13T11:05:00-08:00 Rating: 4.5 Diposkan Oleh: Undercover 999