Charlie Shrem, the Vice Chairman of Bitcoin Foundation Arrested

[Holliday]

marijuana-infused brownies.

Wow. That sounds dangerous. What kind of lab does one need to infuse brownies with marijuana?

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[gentlemand]

I think there'll be a few more arrests of this nature to come.

It'll be slightly ironic that some of the biggest holders of Bitcoin have been massively enriched and subsequently come under a level of scrutiny that they never counted on.

I guess back in 2010-11 it would've felt like your own private playground where regular laws didn't particularly matter. They do when your platform starts to go global.

[eiskalt]

Yeah the same thing happed after SR got busted so I guess we're up to da moon, right?

Neither, probably gonna chill here a bit, as we've been doing. Until gox farts its last fart or the chinapocalypse(tm) happens.

When that 30$ bubble popped, it was only one US senator who demanded to shut bitcoin down. Six months falling prices and BTC lost 90%.

Now we are facing multiple armageddons.

The criminal complaint says that Shrem, in addition to knowing that Faiella's business was funneling money into Silk Road, also used Silk Road himself to buy drugs, including marijuana-infused brownies.

lol charlie, I feel so sorry for you.

If it were cocaine, he would be a reliable businessman.

tststs

[mmortal03]

Although this news seems bearish at first glance, it's actually quite bullish for bitcoin. The FBI/DEA have drawn the line in the sand and are pursuing folks who are engaging or supporting the sale of illegal drugs using bitcoins. They look at bitcoin as a morally nuetral technology that can have many different purposes, just like the internet. They'll crack down on drug use and bitcoin will look even better once it is less associated with illegal activities.

Right, so point 14. e. of the charges states "Bitcoins are not inherently illegal and have known legitimate uses, but they are also known to be used to facilitate illicit transactions and to launder criminal proceeds, given the ease with which they can be used to move money anonymously."

[600watt]

imagine charly s. was trading apples. they busted him because:

he traded apples for dollars with someone,

who allegedly sold those apples to others,

who allegedly used apples to score drugs.



the feds are testing levels of support of the bitcoin community. if they get away with this, they own us. every bitcoin can be traced around some corners to silkroad. you are all criminals because some other people like getting high. 

[Keyser Soze]

Seems like they have a pretty good case for money laundering, those emails say a lot.

[aminorex]

Seems like they have a pretty good case for money laundering, those emails say a lot.

You mean the ones where Mr. Shrem says they should be okay because they are following the rules?

[Kaiji]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25919482

Looks like Mr. Shrem wasn't directly involved in something illegal. He is guilty for not notifying the Gov. about a suspicious buying of coins on bitinstant whatever that means.

He was:
http://rt.com/usa/bitcoin-operator-exchange-arrested-257/
(rt provides a link to the official statement from the justice department)

facing 25 years in a small room with a toilet and a desk (if lucky).

25 years!!!!! and they give child molesters 8 years. What the hell.

[Keyser Soze]

Seems like they have a pretty good case for money laundering, those emails say a lot.

You mean the ones where Mr. Shrem says they should be okay because they are following the rules?

No, the ones where Shrem is giving advice on how to structure cash deposits to avoid suspicion.