Drug marketplace founder Ross Ulbricht speaks out after Trump pardon
Silk Road founder thanks US president for ‘amazing blessing’ in video message after his release from prison. Ross Ulbricht, the dark-web marketplace founder pardoned by United States President Donald Trump, has spoken about his release from prison for the first time. Ulbricht, 40, was sentenced to two life sentences, plus 40 years, in 2015 for running Silk Road, an illicit online market that US prosecutors said facilitated $183m in drug sales using Bitcoin. Trump on Tuesday issued Ulbricht a full and unconditional pardon, fulfilling a campaign promise to libertarians and cryptocurrency enthusiasts who had lobbied for his release. In a video message posted on X on Friday, Ulbricht expressed his gratitude to Trump for granting him clemency. “I was doing life without parole, and I was locked up for more than 11 years but he let me out. I’m a free man now. So let it be known that Donald Trump is a man of his word,” he said. “Thank you so much, President Trump, for giving me this amazing blessing. I am so, so grateful to have my life back, to have my future back, to have a second chance.” Ulbricht said he planned to spend time with his family but would have more to say in the future. Advertisement “This is a victory and it’s your victory, too. And this is an important moment for everybody, everywhere who loves freedom and who cares about second chances,” he said. “It feels amazing to be free, to say the least. It’s overwhelming.” pic.twitter.com/pbqRh9spnk — Ross Ulbricht (@RealRossU) January 24, 2025 Ulbricht’s case had been held up as an example of government overreach by libertarians and crypto supporters, who argued that he had been unfairly prosecuted for transactions made by other people and that his punishment did not fit the crime. Ulbricht’s lawyers also argued that although he had created the site, he handed off control to others after just a few months and had been lured back as a fall guy just as authorities were closing in. Announcing his pardon, Trump branded Ulbricht’s punishment “ridiculous” and said those responsible for his prosecution were some of the “same lunatics who were involved in the modern-day weaponisation of government against me”. US prosecutors cast Ulbricht as a criminal mastermind driven by a desire for money and power, and alleged that drugs sold on his site had caused the deaths of six people. Prosecutors also alleged that Ulbricht had solicited the murders of people he viewed as threats to his operation, though he was not convicted of any such crime and no evidence was presented that anyone had actually been killed. While some Republicans known for espousing libertarian views hailed Trump’s pardon, the move drew condemnation from a number of Democratic legislators. Advertisement “Pardoning drug trafficking kingpins is a slap in the face to the families who’ve lost loved ones to his crimes,” Democratic Senator Catherine Cortez Masto said in a post on X. “Donald Trump should have to explain to them how any of this makes America safer. It’s an outrage.” Adblock test (Why?)
ICC lawyer seeks arrest of Taliban leaders over persecution of women
NewsFeed The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor announced he is seeking arrest warrants for the Taliban’s spiritual leader Haibatullah Akhundzada and its chief justice, accusing them of persecuting women in Afghanistan. Published On 24 Jan 202524 Jan 2025 Adblock test (Why?)
Breathing Hope: Battling asthma and COPD in India’s quest for healthier tomorrow
The air we breathe. Time to act, innovate, and invest in solutions that will make every Indian breathe easy, live fully, and contribute to the nation’s future. Let’s not just dream of a developed India-let’s build one, one breath at a time.
National Girl Child Day: A day of reflection and action to end child marriage
One such battle that looms large over India (and the world) is child marriage. Imagine being robbed of your childhood dreams, silenced before your voice could bloom, and shackled by traditions that demand compliance over choice.
Texas Gov. Abbott asks government to reimburse state for $11B spent to secure southern border
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is requesting that the federal government reimburse his state more than $11.1 billion for taxpayer money spent on securing the southern border during former President Joe Biden’s administration. Abbott, who sent letters to U.S. Congressional members on Thursday, said the Biden administration’s “refusal to do its job the last four years” resulted in the crisis at the southern border that has spilled into the rest of the country. “President Biden’s policies left Texas and the rest of America defenseless against an unprecedented infiltration of violent criminals, known terrorists, and other hostile foreign actors, like the dangerous Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua,” the governor wrote. HOUSE REPUBLICAN INTRODUCES BILL TO REIMBURSE TEXAS FOR BILLIONS SPENT TO SECURE BORDER In response to the federal government’s lack of action at the border, Abbott took matters into his own hands and launched Operation Lone Star in March 2021, which deployed the Texas National Guard and Texas Department of Public Safety to the US-Mexico border. Operation Lone Star has reduced illegal immigration into Texas by 87% over the past four years, proving the “effectiveness of President Donald Trump’s border measures,” according to Abbott, who added that his efforts have shone a national spotlight on the crisis. The governor outlined that the operation has also resulted in the apprehension of more than half a million illegal immigrants, stopped more than 140,000 illegal attempts to enter the US, made more than 50,000 criminal arrests, seized more than half a billion lethal doses of fentanyl, built more than 240 miles of border barriers and established the only National Guard base along the Texas-Mexico border. “In short, Texas stepped up where the federal government refused and in doing so, protected all Americans from President Biden’s dangerous policies,” Abbott wrote. HOUSE REPUBLICANS RENEW PUSH TO REIMBURSE TEXAS FOR ‘OPERATION LONE STAR’ BORDER SECURITY PUSH Though he is proud of the operation, Abbott noted that its success came with a high price tag of more than $11.1 billion, which has been, and continues to be, paid by Texas taxpayers when it “should have been the federal government’s responsibility.” In a document breaking down the costs, Abbott said that prior to the Biden administration, the state of Texas spent approximately $800 million every two years to supplement federal efforts at the border. “The burden that our State has borne is a direct result of a refusal by the federal government to do its job,” Abbott wrote. “The work that Texas has done through Operation Lone Star has protected and will continue to benefit the entire country.” House Republicans have introduced bills in the past requesting Texas be reimbursed for the billions spent on border security, but legislation has never been passed.
Holger Thorsten Schubart stakes future on India’s green horizon
In a move that has sparked significant interest in the clean energy sector, Holger Thorsten Schubart-CEO and majority shareholder of the Neutrino Energy Group-has identified India as the central focus of his company’s expansion plans.
Drupad Patel and Ankita Patel’s ‘Retire Rich at 42’ – BY THE COUPLE FOR THE COUPLE
“This isn’t just for young people aiming to retire early. Even if you’re past 42, this book has lessons for you. It’s never too late to plan your finances and create a better future.”
Delhi weather: Temperature falls down to 11 degrees; trains and flights stand delayed
The minimum temperature recorded in the city as per the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) was 11 degrees Celsius.
Budget 2025: What is halwa ceremony and what does it signify?
The halwa ceremony is a significant event as it also marks the beginning of lockdown at the finance ministry.
Trump’s ICE nabs child sex offenders among 530+ illegal immigrants caught in single day
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested a number of child sex offenders, as well as gang members and other criminals, among the more than 530 illegal immigrants it caught on another day of the Trump-era mass deportation campaign. Official stats show that as of 6 p.m. ET on Thursday, there were 373 criminal arrests and 165 non-criminal arrests for the day. That includes more than 1,000 removals or repatriations. The agency also arrested 16 gang members, including four belonging to the bloodthirsty Tren de Aragua. According to ICE records, the arrests included one in Buffalo, New York of an Ecuadorian national convicted of rape. Also in Buffalo, agents arrested Pedro Julio Mejia, a national from the Dominican Republic convicted of sexual conduct against a child. BORDER ENCOUNTERS DROP SHARPLY AS TRUMP LAUNCHES CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION In St. Paul, Minnesota, agents nabbed Cristofer Alexander Ramirez-Oliva, a Honduran with a conviction for third-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor. Meanwhile, in San Francisco, agents arrested Ariel Rene Romice-Patino, a Mexican who was convicted of sexual exploitation of a child and sentenced to 62 months in prison. FIRST IMAGES OF ICE MASS DEPORTATION EFFORTS SHOW ARRESTS OF MS-13 GANG MEMBERS, MURDER SUSPECTS Agents also arrested Magdaleno Zenen Hernandez Garcia, a Mexican national convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a child aged 14 or younger. In New York, agents arrested Turkish national Gokhan Adriguzel, who is a known or suspected terrorist, officials say. TRUMP’S ICE RACKS UP HUNDREDS OF ARRESTS, INCLUDING ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS ARRESTED FOR HORROR CRIMES In Chicago, agents arrested Rimon Aparicio-Pimentel, a Mexican with a previous conviction for attempted murder, for which he was sentenced to 17 years in prison. ICE lodged a detainer on him in 2017, but it was not honored by authorities, and he was released without ICE being notified. The haul is the latest day of busy work for ICE, which is leading the mass deportation operation launched by the new administration. Before Thursday, ICE had made 460 arrests since Trump was inaugurated. Trump has promised to “seal” the border and launch what he said would be a historic deportation campaign. On day one, he signed 10 orders related to the border, including orders to restart wall construction, end parole programs, limit birthright citizenship and deploy the military to the border. CLICK HERE FOR MORE IMMIGRATION COVERAGE His administration has also ended a Biden-era guideline on “sensitive places” where ICE could not conduct enforcement and removed limits on the use of expedited removals to quickly deport migrants. Fox News this week witnessed ICE Boston make eight arrests, including multiple MS-13, Interpol Red Notices, murder and rape suspects, and a volatile Haitian gang member with 18 convictions in recent years who told our cameras that he “ain’t going back to Haiti” and “f— Trump, Biden forever!” On Thursday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pointed to the latest arrests as proof the administration is delivering on its promises. “The largest massive deportation operation in history is well underway.,” she said on X. “Promises made. Promises kept.”