The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan on Wednesday rejected Ulbricht's claim that he was denied a fair trial because he could not introduce evidence of corruption by two federal agents involved in his probe.

It also rejected the 33-year-old Ulbricht's claim that his prison term of life with no possibility of parole, was too long.

The three-judge panel cited the "staggering" $183 million of illegal drugs sold on Silk Road from 2011 to 2013, and a lower court's finding it more likely than not that Ulbricht arranged at least five murders for hire to protect Silk Road's anonymity.

"That he was able to distance himself from the actual violence he paid for by using a computer to order the killings is not mitigating," Circuit Judge Gerard Lynch wrote in a 139-page decision. "Indeed, the cruelty that he displayed in his casual and confident negotiations for the hits is unnerving."