Former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Agent Carl Force has accepted his crimes including money laundering and extortion of Bitcoin and will plead guilty to the charges, Bloomberg Business reported today. Carl Force and Shaun Bridges are the two former U.S. agents convicted of wire fraud, money laundering and stealing Bitcoin during the federal investigations of the Silk Road.
Carl’s acceptance of pocketing thousands of dollars worth of Bitcoin during the investigations comes just days after Shaun W. Bridges pleaded guilty. Investigations conducted by the two tainted officers led to the life imprisonment of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht.
The case is USA v. Force, 15-cr-00319, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California (San Francisco).
Force’s Shame
The former US agent set up fake online personas and blackmailed Ulbricht for money in order to keep his identity secured from federal investigators. Force used an online persona “French Maid” to extort $100,000 in Bitcoin. Using this alias and other several Bitcoin and U.S. dollar transactions, Force laundered more than $400,000 in Bitcoin to his personal bank accounts, said a court filing.
Force’s lawyer Ivan Bates and prosecutors have requested a July 1 hearing to submit his guilty pleas.
Shaun’s Crimes
Shaun Bridges, who previously served the US Secret Service as a forensic expert, accepted that he stole $820,000 in Bitcoin, all belonging to the Silk Road founder. Bridges, who will submit his guilty plea to the court on August 31st this year, will be tried on charges of money laundering and obstruction of justice. It is expected that Shaun Bridges will be awarded a minimum jail time of 10 years.
The Government Must Set an Example!
It is a depressing state of affairs that the one who should uphold the law above all, stooped to such low levels – blackmailing, extortion, money laundering, obstruction of justice – just so that they could fill their pockets. The government must set up a strong example out of them and award them the severest of the punishments.
