Bitcoin landfill man loses appeal, says he has one ‘last legal option’


A UK man’s bid to acquire a allow to go looking a landfill for his laborious drive — holding personal keys to eight,000 Bitcoin — has been rejected by the UK Courtroom of Appeals.

“Enchantment request to the Royal Courtroom of Enchantment: refused,” Howells said in a March 14 X put up.

“The Nice British Injustice System strikes once more… The state at all times protects the state,” the early Bitcoin adopter added earlier than revealing his “subsequent cease” can be the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).

UK Royal Courtroom of Enchantment Decide Christopher Nugee knocked again Howells’ software, stating that there was no “actual prospect of success” and there was “no different compelling purpose” as to why it needs to be heard, in line with a March 13 submitting shared with Cointelegraph.

0195a16c 86fc 7704 a2a3 8ebdd6798a9a

Supply: James Howells

Nugee’s determination follows an earlier dismissal on Jan. 9 from Excessive Courtroom Decide Andrew Keyser, who equally stated there was “no sensible prospect” of Howells’ case succeeding at a full trial.

In a word to Cointelegraph, Howell stated his “final authorized possibility” to exhaust is on the ECHR — the place he’ll declare that the UK Excessive Courtroom and UK Courtroom of Enchantment breached his proper to property and proper to a good trial below Article 1 of Protocol 1 and Article 6 of the ECHR.

“The British institution wish to sweep this below the carpet, and i cannot allow them to. It won’t go away — regardless of how lengthy it takes!”

The ECHR can not overrule a UK court docket determination — nonetheless, a verdict in Howells’ favor would call on the UK courts to think about whether or not its laws was interpreted in a means that’s suitable with the ECHR’s provisions.

In a separate assertion shared with Cointelegraph, Howells stated he would file a declare to the ECHR within the “coming weeks.”

The court docket filings comply with repeated rejections from the Newport City Council permitting Howells to go looking by way of the Docksway landfill — the place Howells’ former companion disposed of a bag containing the laborious drive on the website in 2013.

Associated: Burning quantum-vulnerable BTC is the best option — Jameson Lopp

Howells’ 8,000 Bitcoin (BTC) is price round $660 million at present costs. Whereas few predicted Bitcoin would attain such heights again then, Howells’ incident illustrates the significance of correctly securing self-custodied crypto funds.

Howells additionally seems to be operating out of time, because the Docksway landfill is reportedly set to shut down someday in the course of the UK’s 2025-2026 monetary yr, BBC Information reported on Feb. 9.

Journal: Bitcoin vs. the quantum computer threat: Timeline and solutions (2025–2035)