The story of the lost bitcoin hard drive and the $646 million lawsuit

A man is suing Newport Council for nearly £500 million to recover 8,000 Bitcoin (BTC) he says he lost in a mix-up that led to a hard drive being dumped at a recycling center in 2013.

James Howells brought the lawsuit as a “last resort” after more than a decade of what he described as “largely ignored” by the council.

Lost Bitcoin

According to local media reports, Howells wants just under half a billion pounds, which translates to $646.4 million. This represents the highest value of his Bitcoin holdings at the beginning of the year, when the cryptocurrency reached an all-time high (ATH) price of $73,737.

However, he emphasized that the amount does not show the true situation. Instead, it aims to “use” the council to allow the landfill to avoid a legal battle.

The 39-year-old has assembled a team of experts who want to carry out the 10 million pound ($13 million) excavation at no cost. He offered to share 10 percent of the value of the recovered coins, which he estimated would be around $53.5 million at current prices.

Howells said he lost the hard drive while cleaning out his home office due to a miscommunication with his partner at the time.

As an early adopter of Bitcoin, he claims to have released 8,000 coins at a low cost. However, their value has increased significantly since the event, and if the predictions of some industry experts come true, the coins could be worth billions in the future.

The council's response

After losing access to his Bitcoin, Howells quit his IT job and pursued full-time endeavors. The court filing stated that the missing hard drive was found in “Cell 2 – Area 2” in Dokway's garbage dump, experts have an 80% chance of finding the information. They suggest the excavation could take 18 to 36 months, followed by a year of environmental remediation.

His team of experts asserted that with the help of AI, they can “safely mine” the site. From 2020, they have pledged to help modernize the landfill, which has repeatedly violated its permit for hazardous waste. Despite this, Newport Council ignored the Howells' overlap.

Meanwhile, the council's lawyers argue that they are legally entitled to the hard drive since it was dumped, but the lawyers say they never intended to leave it.

The group described Howells' claims as “weak” and said drilling was prohibited by their environmental permit. He also emphasized that he would carry out strict environmental monitoring and said that the related allegations were attempts to distract from the weaknesses in his claims.

The case will be heard in court in December, and the Welshman has vowed to continue trying to get the hard drive back until a judge officially stops it.