Griffith declared himself guilty of helping North Korea to evade sanctions through cryptography. Now, he is free, with several restrictions.
Ethereum researcher, Virgil Griffith, who illegally visited North Korea to present how Crypto could help evade sanctions, was released from prison.
Griffith’s lawyer, Alexander Urbelis, reported the news through an X post in April 9Write: “I am very happy to inform that Virgil is out.”
Griffith’s imprisonment was widely unpopular among the cryptographic community, and several prominent figures commented to welcome their freedom.
Those who did included Zooko Wilcox de ZCash, journalist Naomi Brockwell and former executive of Coinbase Linda Xie. The members of the Ethereum community also welcomed the return of Griffith, including former Ethereum Coreum Core Joseph Delong developer.
Griffith himself had contributed to the Ethereum ecosystem since 2016, even in a main role in the name of Ethereum Name (ENS).
Urbelis said Griffith had not been forgiven despite his release. Your legal team will continue to press for a presidential forgiveness.
Talking to Coindesk, Urbelis He said that Finding a forgiveness of the Trump administration is a “continuous process” that has seen a “great progress.”
As of April 9, Griffith was heading to a house halfway in Baltimore. His legal team expects them to be transferred to the house in the near future.
Urbelis says the goal is to help Griffith contribute to society again. Currently, Griffith could remain on probation for years in conditions that are still unknown.
In addition, Griffith is subject to export restrictions up to 2032 that prevent it from participating in transactions that export software outside the USA. These restrictions could make work difficult, especially in the cryptographic industry.
The United States originally caused Griffith in 2019. Then he declared conspiracy guilty to violate the International Law of Emergency Economic Powers (IEEPA) in 2021.
The US authorities said that, after the State Department denied permission, Griffith had traveled to North Korea. There, he presented several issues, even about the use of cryptography to avoid sanctions, to a blockchain conference hearing that included members of the North Korean government.
Later, Griffith pursued plans to facilitate the exchange of cryptography between North Korea and South Korea, tried to recruit other US citizens to travel to North Korea and tried to negotiate presentations between North Korea and cryptography services.
After his guilty statement, Griffith was sentenced to 63 months in prison in April 2022. It was also subjected to a fine of $ 100,000.
Griffith’s prayer was reduced to 56 months In July 2024, due to the changes in the rules of sentence for “zero -point criminals” without previous criminal record. His legal team won the reduced sentence despite the opposition of US authorities.
Discharge of responsibility: The information contained in this document is provided without considering its personal circumstances, therefore, it should not be interpreted as financial advice, investment recommendation or an offer or application for any transaction in cryptocurrencies.
