ROSS Ulbricht was 29 in 2013 when he was arrested by the FBI for running a website called Silk Road – where people from around the world could buy and sell drugs, weapons, poisons, and services such as computer hacking.
Ulbricht’s girlfriend at the time Julia Vie said she had no idea what he was really up to at the time and “he doesn’t deserve to be in jail for the rest of his life.”
Who is Julia Vie?
Julia Vie was introduced to Ross Ulbricht while they were both studying at Penn State University.
At the time, Ulbricht was studying for his Master’s degree in Materials Science and Engineering, while Julia was a first-year student reading law.
Vie said: “When Ross and I really started to get to know each other, it was intense.
“We were always hanging out, always doing these amazing things together.”
When Ulbricht finished his master’s degree and moved back to Austin, Texas Vie left Penn State and followed him.
While in Austin, Ulbricht tried his hand at day trading and running an online bookstore but neither of them took off until he founded the Silk Road website.
At the same time, Vie owned her own photography studio called Vivian’s Muse.
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“I remember when he was coming up with the idea,” Vie said.
She added: “He said something about the Silk Road in Asia and how it was a huge network and that’s what he wanted to create, so he thought it was the perfect name.”
At this point, Ulbricht was spending “practically 24/7” on his computer but Vie wasn’t sure what he was working on.
She said: “I wanted to have a normal life with him, not have him sit in front of a computer on a beautiful day.
“I’m a young, beautiful woman in a new city. Take me out to dinner.”
Their relationship soon fell apart and Ulbricht moved to San Francisco.
But the pair started talking a year later and Vie went to visit Ulbricht – she wanted to rekindle the relationship and invited him to visit her back in Austin.
Vie said: “I was begging him to hurry up and come to me, ’cause I just had a very bad feeling.
“I kept telling him ‘Push your trip up. Leave your computer at home. Just come to Austin’.
“And he was like, ‘No, I’ve got to do some more things here and I’ll see you in a few weeks.'”
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But before he got a chance to get there, the FBI arrested him.
“I think he knew he was going to get caught and end up being a martyr for his cause,” Vie said.
Ulbricht was 29 when he was arrested in 2013 for creating the Silk Road.
The website was around for nearly three years and did more than $200 million in revenue.
He was charged with seven counts, including narcotics trafficking, computer hacking, money laundering, and a kingpin statute which tends to be given to mafia and cartel leaders.
Vie learned about Ulbricht’s arrest from a friend.
“She just said, ‘Google Ross Ulbrich’.
“I did and found ‘Ross Ulbricht arrested.
“I just started bawling and falling on the ground – I was so upset.”
“I knew it was something shady, but I had no idea it was as big as it was.”
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But Vie said: “He was not at all a drug kingpin.
“He never even used the money he made.
“Most kingpins buy fur and jewels and they’re living the life.
“He didn’t even have a car.”
Vie visited Ulbricht at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York, while he was awaiting trial.
She said: “It was nice to see him.
“He wrote to me after that he loved the woman I had become.”
But that was the last time she saw him.
In 2015 Ross Ulbricht was found guilty on all charges and received two life sentences plus 40 years.
Vie said: “I don’t think he deserves to be in jail for the rest of his life.
“I mean, maybe take the best years of his life, at least, but leave him with the last part of his life.”
What’s happened since Ross Ulbricht was sentenced to prison?
Ulbricht tried to appeal his sentence in May 2017.
But the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied his attempt.
Ulbricht also appealed to the Supreme Court in 2017, with attorneys arguing that his case involves unresolved constitutional questions regarding the Fourth Amendment and the digital age.
But in June 2018, the court declined to hear Ross’s case.
In 2019, Ulbricht filed a motion with the New York Southern District Court to vacate or set aside his sentence but this was also denied.
In late 2020, President Donald Trump was considering pardoning Ulbricht’s sentence but ultimately didn’t.
Since Ulbricht’s incarceration, more than 495,000 have signed an online petition created by Ross’ mum Lyn Ulbricht to reduce his double life sentence.
