Additional Coverage:
- Judge halts attempt to retrieve hard drive with nearly $750 million in Bitcoin on it from landfill (newsbreak.com)
Man Loses Court Battle to Recover Lost Bitcoins from Landfill
A British man has been denied permission to retrieve a hard drive containing nearly $750 million worth of Bitcoin from a landfill. The hard drive was accidentally discarded in 2013.
James Howells claimed ownership of the hard drive, which he said contained 7,500 Bitcoins worth nearly $1 billion today. However, the city of Newport argued that the hard drive became its property once it entered the landfill.
A judge ruled in favor of the city, stating that Howells’ claim had “no realistic prospect of succeeding.” The judge also noted that the city’s argument that it owned the hard drive was convincing.
Howells had offered to split the value of the Bitcoin with the city and cover the cost of excavation. However, the city argued that a search was impossible due to environmental permits.
Howells said he plans to appeal the ruling to the UK Supreme Court.