A vast sum of Bitcoin, worth approximately $2 billion, linked to James Zhong of the notorious Silk Road scandal, has been relocated to a new digital wallet. Zhong, convicted in 2022 for wire fraud linked to the now-defunct Silk Road online marketplace, had previously pilfered over 50,000 Bitcoin from the platform in 2012.
On April 2, it was observed that a wallet affiliated with the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) moved a small fraction of Bitcoin to a Coinbase Prime address – likely a test run – before shifting 30,174 BTC totalling roughly $2 billion to a fresh wallet. This DOJ wallet is known to harbor Bitcoin confiscated from Zhong during a 2021 raid on his premises which unearthed various hard wallets brimming with Bitcoin, with one strategically hidden under blankets in a popcorn tin.
Last month, U.S. officials announced they had sold about 9,861 Bitcoin from Zhong’s massive hoard, garnering more than $215 million. This left the DOJ holding around 40,000 Bitcoin prior to the April 2 transaction, which coincided with a more than 7% drop in the Bitcoin value, taking it down to $65,475 at the time.
Silk Road, shut down over ten years ago, was a marketplace infamous for illicit transactions, including the sale of weapons, drugs, and stolen credit card details. Its creator, Ross Ulbricht, was apprehended by U.S. authorities in 2013 and is currently serving double life sentences with no chance for parole.