Thank you to Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the Silk Road, for giving Trump a full pardon

Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht, who has been serving a double life sentence without parole, has publicly thanked US President Donald Trump after receiving a full pardon.

This is the first time Ulbricht has spoken publicly since his release from a maximum-security prison in Arizona, where he has been incarcerated for more than 11 years.

“Last night Donald Trump gave me a full pardon. I was working life without mercy and I was imprisoned for more than 11 years. But he got me out. I am a free man now. So let it be known that Donald Trump is a man of his word,” Ulbricht said in a Jan. 23 video shared on X.

Ulbricht expressed his gratitude, calling the pardon an “incredible blessing.” He added:

“I'm so grateful, President Trump, for giving me this incredible blessing. I'm so, so grateful to get my life back, to get my future back, to get this second chance. This is a very important time for me and my entire family.”

After his release, Ulbricht shared a dedicated page in support of X, Free_Ross:

“Thanks to Donald Trump's pardon, Ross got to hug his wife, mother, father and sister outside the prison walls. The last 36 hours have been a complete whirlwind and we continue to pinch ourselves to make sure we are not dreaming.

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Life after prison

Ulbricht, 40, was convicted in 2015 of his role in creating and operating Silk Road, a dark web marketplace that facilitated the anonymous trade of illegal goods using Bitcoin (BTC).

After the pardon, supporters moved to help them transition to life outside of prison. A wallet linked to the Free Ross campaign has received over $270,000 in Bitcoin donations. Among those who contributed was crypto exchange Kraken, which gave $111,111. Other donations include $2,400 in Ether (ETH), $900 in Solana (SOL), $200 in Cardano (ADA), and smaller amounts in BNB (BNB) and Dogecoin (DOGE).

“It's amazing to be free, to say the least,” Ulbrich said, adding that he plans to spend time with his family and heal from his years in prison. “This is a win. […] To all freedom-loving people everywhere who care about second chances.

Millions of dormant Bitcoin wallets

Despite his generous donations, Ulbricht may already have millions of dollars in Bitcoin.

Conor Grogan, director of Coinbase, revealed that 430 BTC in an untouched wallet worth $47 million were linked to Ulbricht. These wallets, lying dormant for more than 13 years, were not seized by the authorities.

I found ~430 BTC unclaimed in dozens of wallets associated with Ross Ulbricht. [US government] And they've been untouched for 13+ years,” Grogan posted on X.

Arkham Intelligence confirmed Grogan's findings, including 14 Bitcoin addresses linked to the Silk Road, including one wallet containing more than $9 million in BTC.

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