#UK court halts treasure hunt plan#
Hot Topic Overview
Overview
A UK court has rejected IT engineer James Howells' application to search a landfill for a hard drive containing $735 million worth of Bitcoin. Howells accidentally discarded the hard drive containing the Bitcoin in 2013 and hoped to find it in the landfill. However, UK judge Keyser KC ruled that the plan posed environmental risks and had "no realistic prospect of success" at trial, thus rejecting the application. Newport City Council has consistently refused access to the landfill, arguing that excavation would cause environmental pollution. Howells mined the Bitcoin in 2009 when it cost only a few cents to mine, and it is now worth $735 million.
Ace Hot Topic Analysis
Analysis
A UK court has halted a plan to search a landfill for $750 million worth of Bitcoin. The plan was initiated by James Howells, an IT engineer from Newport, Wales, who hoped to find the Bitcoin, worth $735 million, in a landfill where he accidentally discarded a hard drive in 2013. However, UK judge Keyser KC dismissed his application, citing environmental risks. Newport City Council has consistently refused access to the landfill, and the judge deemed the case to have "no realistic prospect of success" at trial. Howells mined the Bitcoin in 2009, when it cost only a few cents to mine, and stored them on the hard drive that was later mistakenly discarded. The court's ruling means Howells will be unable to retrieve his Bitcoin by excavating the landfill, raising concerns about the security of digital assets.
Public Sentiment · Discussion Word Cloud
Public Sentiment
Discussion Word Cloud
Classic Views
A plan to find the bitcoins poses environmental risks, and the court found that the plan had no realistic chance of success.
The Newport City Council refused to allow digging in the landfill, and the court upheld the council's decision.
The case was dismissed as it had no realistic chance of success at trial.
James Howells attempted to recover a hard drive containing $735 million worth of bitcoins, but ultimately failed.