Ethereum researcher Virgil Griffith was released from prison preservation on April 9, Bureau of Prison (BOP) officials confirmed to the cointelegraph.
According to To the crypto developer Brantly Millegan, Griffith will remain in a half -house for weeks while waiting to complete the next steps in his lantern process.
Griffith is Arrested in 2019 For providing a lecture about blockchain technology and its power to avoid US penalties in an audience in North Korea.
Virgil Griffith is pictured in the middle with his parents immediately following his release from prison guard on April 9. Source: Brantly Millegan
The US government claimed Researchers violated the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) by providing North Korea with “high technical information” despite the content of the lecture that is widely available knowledge published on the Internet.
Griffith’s case features tension between blockchain developers and state powers as Nascent technology continues to create ways for individuals and countries to escape financial controls, censorship, and monitoring.
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Virgil Griffith’s legal battle against US prosecutors
In January 2020, a US Grand Jury accused Griffith with the conspiracy to violate IEEPA, which gives the executive branch of the government the power to tighten the economic activity between United States citizens and foreign powers that are considered opponents in the United States.
Griffith at first please not guilty in charges. Software Developer lawyers filed a motion to delete the case In October 2020, it was advised that Griffith did not violate the law by showing what is widely available public knowledge.
Griffith in a crypto -focused lecture in 2019 to a North Korean audience. Source: Cointelegraph/U.S. Department of Justice.
Following a long legal battle, which lasted for about two years, Griffith apologized In violation of punishment laws as part of a plea deal with the US government in September 2021.
Ethereum researcher is penalized 63 months in prison and was ordered to pay a $ 100,000 fine court in April 2022. However, the legal battle did not end there.
Two years later, in April 2024, researcher’s lawyers submitted a motion To reduce the prison penaltyWhich one US prosecutors objectedGriffith’s actions are mentioned that are detrimental to national security.
Despite pushback from prosecutors, New York’s judge Kevin Castel released a decision on July 2024 reduces Griffth’s prison penalty up to 56 months.
Magazine: The FBI takedown of Virgil Griffith for destroying penalties, first
