I hope this message finds you well. I’m reaching out to share an urgent update about my friend, Ian Freeman, a dedicated advocate for Bitcoin, who is fighting to reunite with his family after being wrongfully imprisoned.
Ian’s journey has been a heartbreaking one. He was sentenced to eight years in prison for operating a Bitcoin exchange, but the charges against him are deeply flawed. Rather than being a criminal, Ian has been a pioneer in promoting financial independence through cryptocurrency. His prosecution raises alarming questions about government overreach and the rights of innovators—issues that affect us all.
Free Talk Live host and Shire Free Church minister Zephan Wood began holding sermons at his house three months ago. Crowds have gathered at each event to listen to the sermons and then stay for hours after to discuss everything from cryptocurrency use as a religious practice (the main topic of the sermons) to consciousness, religion and DMT trips. The conversations usually start around his sermon and evolve through out the night, set around a fire.
Most of the attendees have been Free Staters but some have been locals invited out. It is very nice to see a Shire Free Church minister taking up a mission on their own to spread the ideas of peace. My own experience at these events has been welcoming, inspiring and mind-expanding. Conversation among like-minded and non-judgmental people is one of the most important activities for a community.
Crypto users gathered at Little Zoe’s Pizza in Keene for Bitcoin Pizza Day 2019.
It’s been a crazy year with the largest gang in town cracking down on cryptocurrency! From the Crypto6 trial in our very own Keene NH to the arrests of developers writing privacy friendly tools like Tornado Cash. While cryptocurrency accepting businesses and end-users have nothing to worry about the US federal government is doing everything in its power and more to take out cryptocurrency businesses and the technology that underpins it. As was demonstrated in the Crypto6 trial (new NBC DocU series video just released) the truth and evidence are irrelevant. Tell a good story and that’s all the government needs for a conviction. That same playbook is now being used to attack (arrest) the developers of the self-custody Samourai Wallet. The way this wallet works is no different than any other fully self-custody wallet. It doesn’t connect to any centralized service. It’s built off standard crypto protocols and yet the federal government is fraudulently claiming it’s a ‘money laundering service’. No such service exists and as the sources are available (the government appears to have missed them) you can still download, build, and use the software despite that the government has censored the developers via stealing their website, domain, and so forth. If that is allowed to stand there will be no completely legal self-custody wallet developers left unmolested by the US government within the US or any foreign territory the tentacles arms reach.
It’s been two-and-a-half years since the outrageous raid against half-a-dozen peaceful advocates of cryptocurrency here in New Hampshire, now known as “The Crypto Six“. Sadly, federal court rules prohibit any kind of recording of court proceedings, so I’m sharing with you the text of what I intend to read in court prior to the judge issuing his sentence on my now seven victimless crime convictions, as he tossed one of the worst two convictions out a couple of weeks ago. Here it is:
I appreciate the opportunity to speak here today. I hope you can appreciate that I’m in a bit of an awkward position. Normally apologies and acceptance of responsibility are expected from a defendant at a sentencing hearing. I have been convicted on all eight counts I faced in trial by a jury of twelve other human beings. Since that time, this court has thankfully overturned my wrongful conviction on the money laundering count. We are going to be appealing the remaining seven convictions on the basis that the prosecution never proved a single one of them. So, I can’t apologize for those things, as I do not believe I broke the law. Regardless, the jury found me guilty despite the defects in the prosecutors’ case, so there is something in their opinion to be acknowledged. I don’t know if they didn’t like me or didn’t believe me, but they thought I deserved to be found guilty – and I have to accept that there was some reason they did that, whether I like it or not.
Big thanks to the multiple dozens of supporters who came out from as far away as Nevada today to attend my sentencing for the Crypto Six case in federal court in Concord, NH. Surprisingly, the judge was only able to get through part of the sentencing and postponed it three more weeks until my attorneys have a chance to argue why he shouldn’t order restitution. Of course, one major reason is none of my “crimes” had a victim, but that’s not stopping the prosecution from pushing for me to pay the price for what scam artists did to elderly victims.
It’s worth noting that, as we learned at trial from their own witnesses, the feds never bothered to investigate the scammers at all. Instead they disingenuously got some of the scam victims to believe that *I* was somehow behind the scams, which is absolutely absurd and backed by zero evidence. However, the poor victims clearly want to blame someone and for someone to be punished for what was done to them, and I’m apparently the scapegoat.
My attorneys, Mark Sisti and Richard Guerriero, have two weeks to file their arguments. Meanwhile, I’m still out on bail restrictions. Prosecutors are pushing for a maximum sentence of 20 years, and $20.5 million in “forfeiture”, and more in “restitution”. All for selling bitcoin without asking government permission.
If you’re able to come out for the second and presumably the final sentencing date, I would appreciate it! The next date is October 2nd at 10am, at 55 Pleasant St. in Concord, New Hampshire. You will need an ID to get into the federal courthouse, and recording devices are not allowed.
Here is some media coverage from today:
Associated Press report, which kindly mentioned the awesome standing ovation I received upon entering the courtroom.
On Thursday July 28th judge Joseph N. Laplante concluded the sentencing hearing for Crypto6’s Mr Nobody with a ruling to the maximum degree possible in his favor, and below is a run down of the defenses, prosecutors, and judges thoughts and arguments.
For more detail of what happened and a bit of a backstory on the sentencing check out Freedom Decrypted episode 170 where we covered the pre-sentencing motions that went into the variance granted (or in other words the request to reduce the sentence below that typically authorized by the sentencing guidelines).
The notes from the sentencing hearing are as follows:
– Mr Nobody is pleading guilty to a single count of wire fraud
Judge opens with a speech on the sentencing guidelines being the guiding force behind determining the sentence, but are not a hard rule to be followed, and he can sentence Mr Nobody outside of the guidelines.
There is a sealed pre-sentencing report that was created by the court of which came to 26 pages in length. Unfortunately due to certain information contained within it is sealed, but this is for Mr Nobody’s benefit and it may be that this report can be released by him and/or released by him with appropriate sections redacted. While this may not be relevant to Mr Nobody’s sentencing report the type of information that can be included includes information such as histories of mental illness that would be inappropriate to release to the public. Our opportunity as the public therefore to be outraged by the malicious, manipulative, or outright lies contained in it must therefore be reserved till a later date.
Possible outcome based on sentencing guidelines and guilty plea:
On Thursday July 28th judge Joseph N. Laplante concluded the sentencing hearing for Crypto6’s Mr Nobody with a ruling to the maximum degree possible in his favor, and below is a run down of the defenses, prosecutors, and judges thoughts and arguments.
