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The murder-for-hire allegations, in fact, first dissuaded the Trump administration from pardoning Ulbricht: In 2020 the White House considered freeing Ulbricht but ultimately rejected the idea because of the alleged role of violence in the case, according to a former government official involved in the process. spoke to WIRED on condition of anonymity.
Since then, however, the Trump administration has changed its stance on Ulbricht — in part, perhaps, because of its embrace of the libertarian cryptocurrency community, for which Ulbricht has become a martyr and celebrity. Then-presidential candidate Trump at the Libertarian National Convention in Washington DC last May Ulbricht’s sentence has been commuted “On the first day” if re-elected. (After all, the first day passed with no apologies for Ulbricht, even Trump has pardoned more than 1,000 participants January 6, 2021 during the U.S. Capitol riots, though Trump ally Elon Musk promised Post to X Monday evening that “Ross will also be released.”)
It is unclear what role Ulbricht will play in the free world. Even in his statement to the judge at his sentencing hearing in 2015, Ulbricht never fully acknowledged the harm caused by his Silk Road drug dealings and still showed little remorse for his actions in public posts on his account under X, Jared Der-Ighiayan, an ex. Homeland Security Investigations agents who secretly infiltrated Silk Road as part of the case against Ulbricht in November
“The idea of him being released doesn’t bother me at all,” said Der-Yeghian, who now serves as head of strategic intelligence at cryptocurrency tracing firm Chainanalysis. “I’m upset if there is now a perception that he did nothing wrong, that doesn’t make the case.”
Among some advocates of criminal justice reform, however, Ulbricht has become an example of excessive sentencing, especially given that he was technically charged with a nonviolent crime. “The juice served more than enough time. He is a model prisoner. He is a first-time, non-violent offender. He poses zero safety risk to the community,” Alice Johnson, CEO of the justice reform foundation Taking Action for Good, told Wired in November. Johnson spent two decades in prison for attempted possession with intent to distribute, before his life sentence was commuted by Trump in 2018 and pardoned in 2020. “I believe that Ross’s case will pave the way for many others who have been wrongfully given these harsh sentences to come home.”
On Tuesday night, Ulbricht’s supporters celebrated his freedom and expressed gratitude to Trump for his pardon. “Words cannot express how grateful we are,” read a tweet from @Free_Ross, an X account dedicated to Ulbricht’s more than decade-long efforts. “President Trump is a man of his word and he just saved Ross’s life. Ross is a free man!!!!”
Additional reporting by Joel Khalili
