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Ethereum researcher Virgil Griffith is released from prison

by | Apr 9, 2025 | Crypto | 0 comments

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Ethereum researcher Virgil Griffith was released from prison detention on April 9, Bureau of Prisons (BOP) officials confirmed to Cointelegraph.

According to crypto developer Brantly Millegan, Griffith will be staying at the family for a few weeks while waiting to complete the next step in his parole process.

Griffith was arrested in 2019 for his speech on blockchain technology and its scope of sanctions on North Korea’s audience.

Law, U.S. Government, U.S. Courts, Review System

Virgil Griffith posed with his parents after he was released from prison on April 9. Source: Brandt Millergan

The U.S. government claims that researchers have violated the International Emergency Economic Forces Act (IEPA), and that North Korea is “highly technical information” despite the lecture’s content being widely published on the Internet.

Griffith’s case highlights tensions between blockchain developers and state power, as nascent technologies continue to avoid evading financial control, scrutiny and surveillance for individuals and states.

Related: Encryption urges Congress to change Justice Department rules for tornado cash development

Virgil Griffith’s legal battle with U.S. Attorney

In January 2020, a U.S. grand jury sued Griffith for conspiracy to violate the IEEPA, giving the administration authority the right to limit economic activity between U.S. citizens and foreign powers that are considered confrontational to the United States.

Griffith initially pleaded not guilty to the charges. The software developer’s lawyer filed a motion in October 2020 that Griffith failed to violate the law by introducing public knowledge that has been widely available.

Law, U.S. Government, U.S. Courts, Review System

Griffith gave a crypto-centric speech to North Korean audiences in 2019. source: COINTELEGRAPH/U.S. Department of Justice.

After nearly two years of long legal struggle, Griffith reached a part of a plea agreement with the U.S. government in September 2021, pleaded guilty to violations of the sanctions law.

Ethereum researchers were sentenced to 63 months in prison and were fined $100,000 by a court in April 2022. However, the legal struggle has not ended.

Two years later, in April 2024, the researchers’ lawyers filed a motion to reduce prison sentences, a motion that U.S. prosecutors opposed, citing Griffith’s actions were harmful to national security.

Despite prosecutors’ prosecutors, New York Judge Kevin Castel issued a ruling in July 2024 reducing Griffth’s jail sentence to 56 months.

Magazine: FBI was revoked by Virgil Griffith for sanctions