New York, NY, December 14, 2016 – In a huge outpouring of support on December 4, people worldwide tuned in to an eight-hour, online fundraiser called the Free Ross-A-Thon aimed at raising $14,000 to cover some costs of Ulbricht's appeal. The fundraiser surpassed all goals by raising $50,000 from donors around the globe. The largest donation of $25,000 came from bitcoin angel investor and advocate Roger Ver.

Ulbricht was sentenced to life in prison without parole, for all non-violent charges, in May, 2015 for his alleged role in the Silk Road website.  He is currently appealing his conviction and sentence in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals.

The fundraiser came on the heels of Ulbricht's legal team announcing proof of evidence tampering.  A previously unknown copy of the Silk Road forum database clearly shows that someone with access to the site deleted significant portions of evidence, according to Ulbricht's lawyers. This revelation adds another layer of complexity to a case already riddled with corruption. The team also found proof that someone other than Ulbricht used the Dread Pirate Roberts account to log into the site nearly seven weeks after Ulbricht was imprisoned. This contradicts the government's assertion that Ulbricht was the only person using the Dread Pirate Roberts account.

Addressing this new information, Lyn Ulbricht stated, "If this back-up of the forum database had not been found; if log-ins made by DPR after Ross' arrest were not discovered, no one would be the wiser.