President Trump Pardons Ross Ulbricht, Founder of the Infamous Silk Road

On Jan. 21, 2025, President Donald Trump granted a full and unconditional pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the infamous founder of the dark web marketplace known as Silk Road. Ulbricht was sentenced to a double life sentence plus 40 years without parole in May 2015 for his role in running the illicit online platform.

President Trump announced the decision on his Truth Social platform, revealing that he had personally called Ulbricht's mother to share the news: "It was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross," he wrote.

This shocking move has left many asking: Why would Trump pardon a man convicted of such a high-profile crime? Here's what you need to know.

In May 2024, during a speech at the Libertarian Party National Convention in Washington, D.C., Trump made a bold pledge to commute Ross Ulbricht's sentence as soon as he took office. The Libertarian Party, which has long championed drug legalization, had been vocal in its support for Ulbricht's release, arguing that his case was an example of government overreach.

"If you vote for me, on Day 1, I will commute the sentence of Ross Ulbricht to a sentence of time served," Trump declared at the time. "He's already served 11 years. We're going to get him home."

True to his word, Trump followed through on the promise and further elaborated on his decision through a post on his Truth Social platform.

"I just called the mother of Ross William Ulbricht to let her know that in honor of her and the Libertarian Movement, which supported me so strongly, it was my pleasure to have just signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross," he said.

He continued, "The scum that worked to convict him were some of the same lunatics who were involved in the modern-day weaponization of government against me. He was given two life sentences, plus 40 years. Ridiculous!"

Libertarians have celebrated Ulbricht's pardon, with Libertarian National Committee Chair Angela McArdle describing him as "a libertarian political prisoner for more than a decade."

"Ross Ulbricht has been a libertarian political prisoner for more than a decade," she said in a statement via The Associated Press. "I'm proud to say that saving his life has been one of our top priorities and that has finally paid off."

In February 2011, Ross Ulbricht launched Silk Road, a hidden marketplace on the Tor network that became notorious for facilitating the sale of drugs and other illicit goods. He operated the website under the alias "Dread Pirate Roberts," named after a character from The Princess Bride, and quickly built a digital black market empire.

But Ulbricht's empire came crashing down in October 2013 when the FBI arrested him and shut down Silk Road, marking the end of his disturbing underground operation.

Two years later, Ulbricht was convicted on a staggering number of charges, including engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, distributing narcotics, money laundering, computer hacking, and even conspiring to traffic fraudulent identity documents.