Ross Ulbricht, the creator of the “Silk Road” online bazaar that enabled millions of dollars’ worth of drug sales, was pardoned by US President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
Ulbricht was found guilty in 2015 of running the “dark web” site, which sold drugs worth about $200 million to users worldwide, and was given a life sentence.
Ulbricht was given two life sentences for distributing drugs and engaging in criminal activity. Ulbricht operated Silk Road under the nickname “Dread Pirate Roberts” and was also charged with five murders.
On the campaign trail last year, Trump had promised to free Ulbricht during a speech at the Libertarian National Convention, as he sought to gain the fringe party’s support.
“I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbricht to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social website, a day after being sworn in.
Ulbricht’s case had become a cause celebre in libertarian circles, with supporters decrying the conviction as government overreach and against the principles of free markets.
“The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern day weaponization of government against me,” Trump said Tuesday.
Trump has frequently asserted that the criminal allegations against him, both federal and state, were brought for political reasons.
Although the crowd cheered in May when the Republican pledged to liberate Ulbricht, he has previously threatened to execute drug traffickers.
The Libertarian Party frequently fields insignificant candidates who advocate for fringe policies like dismantling social security or the federal tax collection agency while still supporting well-liked limited-government policies like legalizing marijuana.
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