Whatever happened to BurtW who got arrested for bitcoin trading?

[moriartybitcoin]

anybody know the current status of BurtW's legal troubles?  He got arrested for bitcoin trading in colorado last year, and no information has come to light publicly since then. Did he take a plea deal? Going to trial? Anybody knows, please post here .. it is of concern to anyone who trades Bitcoins for cash

[SpanishSoldier]

anybody know the current status of BurtW's legal troubles?  He got arrested for bitcoin trading in colorado last year, and no information has come to light publicly since then. Did he take a plea deal? Going to trial? Anybody knows, please post here .. it is of concern to anyone who trades Bitcoins for cash

1. Please change Whatever to What in your title.

2. BurtW came to this board and talked about legal situation. So, if your search his last posts, u'll get a clear picture of the status.

p.s. Though I have not seen him around since the recent hack. So, not sure if his profile is compromised now.

[bryant.coleman]

Why don't you check the official thread, which was created by theymos?

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=934268.0

And here is the profile of BurtW:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=14808

He was online just a few hours ago, but his last post was made on May 15.

[ragi]

Why don't you check the official thread, which was created by theymos?

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=934268.0

And here is the profile of BurtW:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=profile;u=14808

He was online just a few hours ago, but his last post was made on May 15.

This is fcked up

[oblivi]

Anyone that already knows to story cares to do a TL;DR? that's 30 pages of reading...
Is this related to LocalBitcoins? (an agent buying/selling BTC that gets you IRL when you go to do the transaction)

[--Encrypted--]

Anyone that already knows to story cares to do a TL;DR? that's 30 pages of reading...
Is this related to LocalBitcoins? (an agent buying/selling BTC that gets you IRL when you go to do the transaction)

full story from BurtW's wife

http://www.jmwagner.com/

[Keyser Soze]

As far as I know the details of the case are still sealed. Besides the indictment on the main thread, there isn't much information available.

[melody82]

So from what I read about the story, using localbitcoins is basically illegal by default?  I have no way of knowing what my buyer is going to spend coins on.  This is absurd! And why don't they prosecute banks for doing the exact same thing.  What is the difference between this guy and getting money from an atm?  The whole case is just so weird.  And it makes me a little paranoid about using bitcoins!  Is the nsa tracking me now because I hold some pennies in crypto?  Spooky.

[escrow.ms]

Is this guy BurtW ? http://www.in.gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/01301503ebb.pdf

[--Encrypted--]

Is this guy BurtW ? http://www.in.gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/01301503ebb.pdf

yep, Burton Wagner Thomas Thomas Wagner Burton. I retract my words

[newIndia]

Is this guy BurtW ? http://www.in.gov/judiciary/opinions/pdf/01301503ebb.pdf

No. This is about Thomas W. Burton. But, BurtW's full name is Burt Wagner (Ref: burtw.com).

[JeanW]

On July 13, 2015, the federal case against Burt was dismissed at the request of the Department of Justice.  Unfortunately the debt incurred to fight the spurious charge and the damage done to Burt's reputation remains.  Thank you to those who have supported our family during this difficult time.  
-- Jean
www.jmwagner.com and www.burtw.com

[TheButterZone]

Can we see a copy of the order? If it's on PACER under a district court case #, I can RECAP it for everyone to read for free.

[JeanW]

Can we see a copy of the order? If it's on PACER under a district court case #, I can RECAP it for everyone to read for free.

The case no. is 14-cr-0398-WJM and it's the Order Granting Government's Motion to Dismiss Indictment without Prejudice
I assume it is on Pacer. 

Thanks

[SpanishSoldier]

On July 13, 2015, the federal case against Burt was dismissed at the request of the Department of Justice.  Unfortunately the debt incurred to fight the spurious charge and the damage done to Burt's reputation remains.  Thank you to those who have supported our family during this difficult time.  
-- Jean
www.jmwagner.com and www.burtw.com

Well... that's a good news.

[jeannemadrigal2]

So from what I read about the story, using localbitcoins is basically illegal by default?  I have no way of knowing what my buyer is going to spend coins on.  This is absurd! And why don't they prosecute banks for doing the exact same thing.  What is the difference between this guy and getting money from an atm?  The whole case is just so weird.  And it makes me a little paranoid about using bitcoins!  Is the nsa tracking me now because I hold some pennies in crypto?  Spooky.

AFAIK they will only get you if they tell you they will do something illegal.  Like you sell to them and they tell you it is for drugs.  If that happens then cancel the transaction because they are under cover agents.

The Burt case is a little different, where his money was seized.  I don't really understand the law, but basically if you have any money on you, of any amount, cops can just steal it because they "suspect" that you are going to use it for something bad.  They can do this without due processes.  So if you use lbc, be careful to not carry lots of cash.  You may want to use electronic transfer methods in stead of physical cash.  I think the laws are vague, so basically if the gov wants to screw you then they can, and you can't do anything about it.

[TheButterZone]

So, this is where the criminal docket began: http://ia902603.us.archive.org/19/items/gov.uscourts.cod.151411/gov.uscourts.cod.151411.1.0.pdf

and this is where it ended: http://ia902603.us.archive.org/19/items/gov.uscourts.cod.151411/gov.uscourts.cod.151411.38.0.pdf

Sue the government for malicious prosecution and civil rights violations.

Wait, there are a couple of restricted documents on the docket that only the prosecution and defense can view, and considering that it was dismissed WITHOUT prejudice, it seems that the government can refile charges without violating double jeopardy. WTF happened?

[BurtW]

From my attorney, who earned every penny we paid him:

STATEMENT


Federal Criminal Case Against Burt Wagner Dismissed

at the Request of the Department of Justice


July13, 2015


I am very excited to announce that the criminal case against my client Burt Wagner was dismissed today. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Colorado filed a motion earlier today requesting that the U.S. District Court Judge handling the case, the Honorable William J. Martinez, dismiss the case against Mr. Wagner. Judge Martinez subsequently issued an order dismissing it.

On October 7, 2014, Mr. Wagner was charged in a single-count indictment with violating 18 U.S.C. § 1960 (operation of unlicensed money transmitting business) in connection with his purchases and sales of bitcoins. Mr. Wagner entered a plea of not guilty. Although Mr. Wagner and I both wish he had never been charged, we appreciate the U.S. Attorney's Office ultimately doing the right thing and dismissing the criminal case against him.

With this dismissal, Mr. Wagner can begin the process of resuming his regular life. It has been a true privilege to represent Mr. Wagner. I could not be happier for him and his family.

Contact:

Brian Klein
Baker Marquart LLP
10990 Wilshire Boulevard, 4th Floor
Los Angeles, California 90024
Phone: (424) 652-7814
Email: bklein@bakermarquart.com

[killerjoegreece]

anybody know the current status of BurtW's legal troubles?  He got arrested for bitcoin trading in colorado last year, and no information has come to light publicly since then. Did he take a plea deal? Going to trial? Anybody knows, please post here .. it is of concern to anyone who trades Bitcoins for cash

i would like to know what happened to that guy.

[Kakmakr]

Here are the 186 ($42,222.00 as of this posting) Bitcoins taken from me by Homeland Security:

https://blockchain.info/address/1Eu38i1DkRAPAJhSqbseVroJDpMRfJbAx3

I am sure you guys can come up with some creative, interesting, fun ideas to do with this information.

Do they still have control over those coins? Or was it handed back to you? The comments on some of those transactions is very funny, but it's going to get some people into trouble. I would shit myself, if I had to hand over my private keys to some government agency.

I guess the best way to keep them save, is to not have them with you in your house. You could also hide it on some online sites, and disguise them within some encrypted documents.