Several Bitcoin exchanges including the now-defunct Mt. Gox received
subpoenas from Manhattan federal prosecutors this winter as they look
into possible ties between the exchanges and the online drug market Silk
Road, the Wall Street Journal reported on Monday, citing people
familiar with the matter.
The subpoenas to Mt. Gox demanded
customer-transaction logs and materials related to solicitation of
investors. The report did not mention any other Bitcoin businesses that
received subpoenas.
Mt. Gox's lawyers advised Chief Executive
Officer Mark Karpeles against going to the United States after he was
summoned by a judge there to testify for a class-action lawsuit, because
they were concerned he would be arrested in connection with this case.
(Also see: Mt. Gox CEO ordered to US for questions on failed Bitcoin exchange)
The
prosecutors and Federal Bureau of Investigation agents are examining
whether the exchange and others like it may have processed transactions
connected to Silk Road, the people said.
The investigation was at
an early stage and there were no conclusions yet on whether the
exchanges were connected with Silk Road, one of the people familiar with
the matter told the paper.
Last month, prominent Bitcoin
entrepreneur Charlie Shrem was indicted by a federal grand jury in New
York on charges of funneling cash to Silk Road.
Shrem, one of the
digital currency's most visible promoters, is accused of conspiring with
a Florida man, Robert Faiella, to sell more than $1 million in Bitcoin
to the users of Silk Road despite knowing that it would be spent on
illegal activities including drug trafficking.
It was preceded by
the arrest of alleged Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht in San Francisco
last year when he was charged in federal court in Manhattan with counts
relating to drug trafficking, money laundering and computer hacking, all
stemming from his alleged involvement in the illicit online
marketplace, which sold drugs and criminal services in exchange for
Bitcoin. After Ulbricht's arrest, the government shut down the website.
© Thomson Reuters 2014
Bitcoin Falls to $104,300, Most Altcoins See Losses Amid Israel-Iran Tensions13 June 2025
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