Renowned Bitcoin pioneer Roger Ver, who is also the author of “Hijacking Bitcoin,” has been held in legal purgatory in Spain for nearly eight months, awaiting the decision on his extradition to the U.S. Accused of tax fraud by the U.S. government, the crypto community has been rallying behind Ver, with many leading figures adding their voice to an open letter seeking his release, and an end to what they perceive as the unjust targeting of economic innovators.
Roger Ver, an early Bitcoin adopter and angel investor, was arrested in Barcelona in April by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). Ver, often referred to as “Bitcoin Jesus,” claims he is being unfairly targeted by the U.S. government due to his political views. Despite renouncing his U.S. citizenship in 2014, Ver says he has been striving to comply with IRS demands.
The DOJ argues that Ver owes $48 million in taxes, alleging that his tax returns substantially undervalued his two companies and their 73,000 bitcoins, and failed to report his personal bitcoin holdings. The IRS further maintains that Ver owes taxes from bitcoin sales made after he had given up his U.S. citizenship.
However, thousands of important figures in the crypto world, as well as advocates of peace and economic freedom, strongly disagree with the government’s stance.
The “Free Roger Now” open letter, also known as “FREEROGER,” has garnered 2,744 signatures so far. Notable supporters include Charles Hoskinson, founder of Cardano, and renowned biologist and author Bret Weinstein. Hoskinson expressed his disappointment in a video post, stating that Ver was a tireless advocate in the early days of Bitcoin and a true libertarian. He criticized the U.S. government for pursuing Ver for taxes long after he had renounced his citizenship.
The timing of Ver’s arrest, which happened shortly after the release of his book, has also raised eyebrows. His book, “Hijacking Bitcoin: The Hidden History of BTC,” criticizes the manipulation and sabotage of BTC as a peer-to-peer electronic cash system, which has turned it into a largely unusable speculative asset. Instead, the book champions Bitcoin Cash as the real bitcoin.
Bret Weinstein tweeted his support for Ver, stating that Ver faces extradition to the U.S. and a potential sentence of up to 109 years if convicted, despite not having committed a crime.
The plight of Ver mirrors that of another Bitcoin early adopter, Ross Ulbricht, who has been serving a double-life-sentence-plus-40-years since 2015 for selling cannabis and other substances online.
The “FREEROGER” open letter calls on the U.S. government to end the unjust prosecution of Roger Ver. As the crypto community continues to fight for economic freedom, mass appeals are being made to political figures for the release of crypto users, advocates, and innovators.
In the words of Roger Ver, “And when I realized that Bitcoin has the potential to … undermine every government on the entire planet’s ability to wage war, I knew I had to get involved and start promoting Bitcoin full time.” This potential lies in the peer-to-peer, direct action of the cryptocurrency.
