Trump Pardons Ross Ulbricht, Silk Road Dark Web Drug Marketplace Founder

On his second day in office, President Trump granted a full and unconditional pardon to Ross William Ulbricht, founder of the Silk Road dark web marketplace, who was serving a life sentence without parole for operating ’the most sophisticated and extensive criminal marketplace on the Internet,’ according to the Department of Justice. Ulbricht, operating under the pseudonym ‘Dread Pirate Roberts,’ ran Silk Road from 2011-2013 as an anonymous marketplace facilitating illegal drug sales, money laundering, computer hacking, and identity fraud. He was convicted in 2015 on seven felony counts including distributing narcotics, engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiring to commit computer hacking, and conspiring to launder money. The pardon fulfilled Trump’s May 2024 campaign promise to Libertarian Party supporters, who viewed Ulbricht as a symbol of anti-government resistance despite evidence Silk Road facilitated overdoses and deaths. Trump announced the pardon on Truth Social, stating he called Ulbricht’s mother ‘in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly.’ Senator Tim Kaine condemned the pardon as ‘alarming,’ noting Ulbricht’s marketplace enabled massive drug trafficking that contributed to the opioid epidemic. The pardon exemplifies Trump’s transactional approach to presidential clemency, rewarding political constituencies rather than applying mercy based on rehabilitation or justice considerations. Critics noted the pardon undermined federal law enforcement efforts against dark web criminal enterprises and sent a message that supporting Trump politically could override serious criminal convictions.