Silk Road had processed ~$1.2B in Bitcoin transactions for drugs and illicit goods. Ulbricht was sentenced to two life sentences plus 40 years. The case established that Bitcoin was not in fact anonymous — blockchain analysis unraveled Ulbricht's identity. It also legitimized government crypto seizures as a tool.
regulation·October 2, 2013
Silk Road Seized by FBI
The FBI shuts down darknet market Silk Road and arrests founder Ross Ulbricht. 174k BTC seized.