Ross Ulbricht Got a $31 Million Donation From a Dark Web Dealer, Crypto Tracers Suspect
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Summary
Bitcoin tracing investigator ZachXBT and firm Chainalysis have both indicated that the $31m of Bitcoin received by pardoned darknet market creator Ross Ulbricht likely did not come from Silk Road sales, as originally speculated.
ZachXBT believes the money came from illicit origins, but was a “legitimate donation not legitimate funds”.
Chainalysis has claimed the bitcoins likely came from AlphaBay, a rival darknet market that was 10 times the size of Silk Road and active from 2014 to 2017.
It is speculated that the money could be a thank you or a repayment of a favour from another black marketeer.
Ulbricht’s supporters lobbied for his pardon which was granted by Trump in February.
