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Virgil Griffith, an Ethereum developer, was sentenced to five-years and three months in U.S. Prison after pleading guilty to a charge he incurred by speaking at a North Korean crypto conference. According to the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), his presentation provided the Kim Jong Un regime with “technical advice on using cryptocurrency and blockchain technology to evade sanctions.”
Ethereum Developer Virgil Griffith Going to Prison for Violating North Korean Sanctions
Virgil Griffith, an Ethereum developer, was sentenced to 63 months in prison Tuesday by U.S. District Judge P. Kevin Castel in Manhattan.
Griffith pleaded guilty in September last year to one count of conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA). The charge carries a maximum term of 20 years in prison. In a plea agreement, the prosecutors agreed not to seek more than six and half years in prison.
The Ethereum developer was arrested in November 2019 in Los Angeles. According to the DOJ, he is accused of violating the IEEPA by traveling to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea or North Korea to give a presentation and technical advice about using cryptocurrency and blockchain technology in order to evade sanctions.
The crypto enthusiast is currently in federal custody after his second arrest, when Judge Castel removed his bail. According to the federal judge, his cryptocurrency holdings had risen in value giving him the incentive to flee. He was reportedly arrested when logging into his Coinbase account.
Inner City Press quoted Judge Castel saying Tuesday that “some say Mr. Griffith is being persecuted because he promotes crypto. This is not the case. The day before trial, he pleaded guilty. He pleaded guilty the day before trial.
Virgil Griffith has no ideology. He will play both sides as long as he’s at the center. I sentence him to 63 months in prison and a fine of $100,000.
The ‘US vs. Virgil Griffith Court Case
The case followed Griffith’s visit to North Korea in order to attend the “Pyongyang Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Conference” or “the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference” in April 2019, the DOJ explained. The court document details:
Despite that the U.S. Department of State had denied Griffith permission to travel to the DPRK, Griffith presented at the DPRK Cryptocurrency Conference, knowing that doing so violated sanctions against the DPRK.
The DOJ stated that Griffith, a U.S. citizen who lives in Singapore, did not obtain permission from U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control to “provide goods, services or technology to DPRK .”
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The Department of Justice stated that “Griffith” and other attendees had discussed how the DPRK could utilize blockchain and cryptocurrency technology in order to launder money and avoid sanctions at the conference. There were approximately 100 other attendees.
What do you think about Virgil Griffith’s sentencing? Comment below.
Kevin Helms
A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests include Bitcoin security, open source systems, network effects, and the intersection of cryptography and economics.
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