Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the online marketplace Silk Road, said conservative activist Charlie Kirk was a chief advocate for the presidential pardon that ended Ulbricht’s life sentence. Ulbricht made the disclosure in a tribute posted on X on Thursday following Kirk’s fatal shooting at a university event in Utah earlier this week.
In the post, Ulbricht said Kirk had told then-President Donald Trump that freeing him should be a top priority after the 2024 election and that Kirk pressed Trump for a full pardon in the days leading up to Ulbricht’s release. "He never took credit for it but he played a BIG role in my freedom in many ways," Ulbricht wrote, adding he was "heartbroken" by Kirk’s death and that he would "always be grateful" for Kirk’s efforts on his behalf.
Ulbricht, who ran the dark‑web marketplace under the alias "Dread Pirate Roberts," was arrested in a California public library in 2013. He was convicted in 2015 of distributing narcotics, engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiring to commit computer hacking and laundering money, and was sentenced to life in prison plus 40 years.
Supporters on the political right and in libertarian circles had campaigned for Ulbricht’s release, arguing his punishment was excessive and amounted to government overreach. After taking office for a second term, President Trump issued a full pardon for Ulbricht in January. In a post on Truth Social at the time, Trump said he had called Ulbricht’s mother to inform her he had "signed a full and unconditional pardon of her son, Ross," and criticized the prosecutors who pursued the case.
Prosecutors at the Justice Department at one point alleged that associates of Ulbricht had committed five murders on behalf of the Silk Road operation; that claim was a focus of earlier investigations but those alleged killings were never proven in court.
Kirk, 31, the founder of Turning Point USA and a prominent conservative organizer who campaigned for Mr. Trump in 2024, was shot while speaking to college students at Utah Valley University on Wednesday. Authorities have said he was shot in the throat and pronounced dead at the scene. Law enforcement officials have not identified or apprehended a suspect and have not publicly released a motive.
Ulbricht’s tribute included a photograph of the two men embracing and a message of condolence to Kirk’s family. "I wish there was something I could do to help Charlie get his life back. But there isn't, and I'm heartbroken," Ulbricht wrote on X.
The shooting has prompted an ongoing law enforcement investigation. Local and federal law enforcement agencies have urged anyone with information to come forward as they work to determine who fired the shot and why. No public comment was available from the White House on Thursday about Ulbricht’s account of Kirk’s role in the pardon process.
Ulbricht’s remarks and the circumstances of Kirk’s death highlight the intersection of criminal justice, political advocacy and high‑profile clemency in the United States. Ulbricht’s case was long debated across the political spectrum and became a touchstone for critics of drug enforcement and sentencing practices; the pardon and the newly disclosed role of Kirk add a personal dimension to that debate as authorities continue to investigate the killing at Utah Valley University.