Criminal who stole 50,000 bitcoins from darknet 'Silk Road' pleads guilty in Southern District of New York

According to an announcement on the U.S. Department of Justice’s official website, James Zhong, a criminal who stole 50,000 bitcoins from the dark web “Silk Road” between 2012 and 2017, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. On November 9, 2021, law enforcement seized 50,676.17851897 bitcoins, worth over $3.36 billion at the time, during a search of James Zhong’s house in Georgia, making it the second-largest financial case ever seized by the U.S. Department of Justice . From September 2021 to August 2017, James Zhong used technical means to attack the withdrawal system of "Silk Road", withdrawing about 50,000 bitcoins to an account controlled by him. Later, James Zhong obtained 50,000 BCH due to the Bitcoin fork, and after selling all of them, he held a total of 53,500 Bitcoins. Law enforcement agencies seized a total of more than 50,676 bitcoins, $661,900 in cash and a large number of precious metal products from his residence. James Zhong voluntarily surrendered more than 1,000 bitcoins. In addition to the aforementioned assets, the court ultimately forfeited its 80% stake in RE&D Investments, LLC, which owns a substantial amount of real estate. Sentencing in the case is scheduled for February 22, 2023, and the Justice Department says it carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.