Charlie Shrem has just informed his over 11,000 followers that he is now off to prison, becoming "Bitcoin 's first felon" according to an earlier goodbye post. He said via Twitter:
Well I'm off to prison now! Follow my twitter for tweets from the inside #Bitcoin
— Charlie Shrem (@CharlieShrem) March 30, 2015Shrem pleaded guilty to charges of running an unlicensed money transmitting business through his company BitInstant. He was handed a 2-year prison sentence. The ruling was considered a major victory after he faced up to thirty years for additional charges related to Silk Road and money laundering.
He has remained highly interactive with his supporters and the larger Bitcoin community since his arrest. He has remotely addressed Bitcoin conferences, consulted for Bitcoin companies and participated in online communities. In general, he has kept his supporters abreast of developments. Indeed, he has also informed followers that a few people will be running his Twitter account, posting his updates "from behind the walls."
In the last few days leading up to his internment, Shrem and supporters have pointed to the recent fining of PayPal. The Payments giant was charged by the US Treasury for processing payments to people in countries under sanction, costing it $7.7 million. Shrem & Co noted that nobody from PayPal is going to prison.
