Feds arrest 8 more in Silk Road case, say others in claimed $1.2B scheme should be 'very nervous'
After seizing the Silk Road website allegedly used to arrange some $1.2 billion in illegal drug sales and arresting its alleged operator, the feds have not slowed down.
With the help of authorities in the United Kingdom and Sweden, another eight individuals have been arrested and more are expected to face charges, the Associated Press reports.
“Any large sellers on Silk Road should be very nervous,” said researcher Nicholas Weaver of the International Computer Science Institute in Berkeley, Calif.
Meanwhile, the feds are struggling to get their mitts on some 600,000 Bitcoins worth $80 million or so that claimed Silk Road operator Ross William Ulbricht is said to have accumulated, according to Forbes’ The Not-So Private Parts and the Guardian.
The feds have already seized 26,000 Bitcoins belonging to customers.
Asked by Forbes columnist Kashmir Hill whether customers will get their virtual money back, a FBI spokeswoman chuckled.
“There is not likely to be restitution in this case,” she said. “If they’re knowingly buying something illegal, they can’t get their money back.”
See also:
ABAJournal.com: “‘Silk Road’ chief charged in drug case; feds say site did $1.2B in illegal Bitcoin-funded business”
SFGate Blog: “Silk Road drug crackdown broadens to Washington, Britain”
