Trump says he pardoned founder of Silk Road criminal marketplace - Buying votes

 https://edition.cnn.com/2025/01/21/politics/silk-road-ross-ulbricht-pardon-trump/index.html

The government had alleged that Ulbricht, who donned the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts,” a nod to the fictitious character in the film “The Princess Bride,” founded the site in 2011. The now-defunct marketplace allowed users to anonymously trade drugs and other illegal goods and services in near-total secrecy using bitcoin. According to the indictment, Silk Road acquired nearly a million registered users worldwide, about 30% of whom were based in the US.

Ulbricht had been convicted following a four-week jury trial. Preet Bharara, then the US attorney for the Southern District of New York, said at the time that “Ulbricht was a drug dealer and criminal profiteer who exploited people’s addictions and contributed to the deaths of at least six young people.”

Trump’s act of clemency makes good on a campaign promise. In May 2024, Trump pledged in remarks to the Libertarian Party’s national convention in Washington, DC, to commute Ulbricht’s sentence immediately upon taking office.

“If you vote for me, on Day 1 I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht to a sentence of time served,” Trump said at the time. “He’s already served 11 years. We’re going to get him home.”