In early January, Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the dark web platform “Silk Road,” who was pardoned by U.S. President Donald Trump, expressed dissatisfaction with eBay, as the online auction platform had not completed his identity verification for over a week. Ulbricht felt discriminated against and ironically remarked that he should create his own e-commerce platform.
On Wednesday, Ulbricht stated on social media platform X that he wanted to auction some personal items. A week ago, he submitted all the documents required by eBay for identity verification, but he has yet to receive any results. Despite communicating with several eBay representatives, his case has continually been delayed.
Later, Ulbricht claimed he was informed that eBay was aware of the situation, yet the platform still chose not to take any action. He further stated:
Ulbricht’s dark web marketplace “Silk Road,” which he operated years ago, utilized Bitcoin (BTC) for transactions, contributing to the early popularity of the cryptocurrency. However, the site was heavily used for the sale of drugs and other illegal products and services, which also led to significant criticism of Bitcoin due to its association with these illicit activities.
In October 2013, Ulbricht was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and subsequently convicted in 2015 on multiple charges, including participating in a continuing criminal enterprise, distributing drugs, conspiracy to distribute drugs, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to sell false identification documents. Some Bitcoin supporters believe that Ulbricht’s punishment was excessively harsh and have long called for a reduction in his sentence. In January of this year, Trump fulfilled his campaign promise by signing an executive order to pardon Ulbricht, ending his nearly 12-year imprisonment.
