2015 Federal Trial

A jury was sworn and heard competing openings about whether Ross Ulbricht continued operating Silk Road as Dread Pirate Roberts after creating it. The first witness, HSI agent Jared Der-Yeghiayan, described intercepted drug shipments, undercover work, and Tor. The court also set limits on oral readings of written chats.

Jared Der-Yeghiayan described Silk Road’s payments, his undercover staff work, and surveillance of Ross Ulbricht at Glen Park library. He explained a conditional plan to test whether Ulbricht was Dread Pirate Roberts. The court addressed authentication and hearsay objections, distinguishing evidentiary findings from ultimate conclusions and limiting the uses of some exhibits.

Jared Der-Yeghiayan described DPR chats and account screens on Ulbricht's laptop, then faced cross-examination about shared credentials and earlier suspicions involving Mark Karpeles. The court deferred rulings on disputed Karpeles evidence and addressed a juror's encounter with a reporter, later reported to concern an unrelated article.

Jared Der-Yeghiayan faced cross-examination about shared accounts, investigative leads, and when Ulbricht entered his investigation. The court limited alternative-perpetrator questioning and directed counsel to treat selected earlier testimony as slated for striking. On redirect, the agent described an arrest-day chat he said matched one on Ulbricht's computer.

Jared Der-Yeghiayan completed testimony on writing comparisons, registration records and limits on identifying DPR chat participants. Thomas Kiernan described Ulbricht's laptop seizure and recovered files. The court admitted exhibits over objections, instructed jurors to disregard investigative suspicions about others and deferred the required connection for alleged defendant statements.

Thomas Kiernan and Christopher Jon Beeson testified about laptop evidence and forensic collection limits. Richard Chapman Bates described Ulbricht's early operation of Silk Road, later statements about selling it, and his own nonprosecution agreement. The court denied a defense mistrial motion and instructed jurors that the defendant need not call witnesses.

Christopher Jon Beeson testified about RAM capture failures and the limits of his laptop collection. Gary Luis Alford traced Altoid posts and compared computer files with account records. The court addressed cooperator questioning and authentication, while snow curtailed the trial schedule.

Alex Miller and Gary Luis Alford testified about online accounts and records, Dylan Critten described intercepted counterfeit IDs, and Michael Duch described heroin sales on Silk Road. Cross-examination addressed identity limits, investigative scope and cooperation incentives. The court also reviewed disputed jury instructions.

Ilhwan Yum testified about bitcoin tracing and its limits, and the court denied a motion to strike his testimony. Brian Shaw presented reconstructed marketplace pages and account-attributed messages. Michael Duch completed testimony, an FBI agent demonstrated malware, and the court addressed disputed jury instructions.

Brian Shaw completed testimony on Silk Road records before the government rested and three defense character witnesses testified. The court kept disputed drug-weight estimates excluded and denied the defense's acquittal motion on all seven counts.

The defense rested after testimony from Christopher Kincaid and Bridget Prince and the presentation of documentary evidence. Both sides completed closing arguments over Ulbricht's identity as DPR, the duration of his involvement and the reliability of digital evidence. The court denied a defense mistrial motion and deferred jury instructions until the next morning.

After final instructions and deliberations, the jury found Ross Ulbricht guilty on all seven counts. All twelve jurors confirmed the verdict, and the court set sentencing for May 15 at 10 a.m.