Bitcoin early investor Roger Ver, dubbed the “Bitcoin Jesus,” recently gave an interview to American journalist Tucker Carlson, discussing the legal dispute he is currently engaged in with the US government and his views on the suppression of Bitcoin’s original vision.
In 2014, Roger Ver renounced his US citizenship and was arrested in Spain in April of this year. US authorities are seeking his extradition on charges of tax evasion, mail fraud, and submitting false tax returns. According to the US Department of Justice, Ver failed to report capital gains from the sale of Bitcoin when he renounced his US citizenship in 2014, and also undervalued the worth of two companies. Prosecutors allege that Ver concealed his ownership of 131,000 Bitcoins, which were worth nearly $240 million when sold in 2017, resulting in a tax shortfall of $48 million.
However, Ver strongly refutes these accusations, believing that the US government’s real dissatisfaction lies not in the alleged tax issues, but rather in his long-standing promotion of using cryptocurrencies to achieve financial autonomy. He sees cryptocurrencies as a threat to the government’s control over the monetary system.
Ver has always advocated for Bitcoin to operate as “peer-to-peer cash” and criticized the leading cryptocurrency for becoming a speculative asset. He believes that the original hope for Bitcoin as an alternative to fiat currency has been subverted by intelligence agencies and institutional players.
In his book “Hijacking Bitcoin,” published earlier this year, Ver detailed these claims. Host Carlson pointed out the ideological shift in cryptocurrencies and mentioned that Bitcoin originally promised freedom and self-control over one’s money, but now feels different. Carlson expressed great interest in how all of this has unfolded.
During the interview, Ver claimed that US institutions have attempted to stifle the potential of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. He accused intelligence agencies of intervening early on to undermine Bitcoin’s narrative as a medium of exchange. Ver alleged that online forums like the early Bitcoin forum bitcointalk.org and the Bitcoin subreddit r/bitcoin on Reddit have been manipulated and censored, leading Bitcoin to deviate from its decentralized origins.
When asked if he believed that Bitcoin was initially created by US intelligence agencies, Ver responded:
Despite facing the possibility of 109 years in prison, Ver remains optimistic. He expressed hope that the Spanish court would reject the US extradition request and emphasized the need for public advocacy. He stated, “There are many ways to stop this, but I think the most effective way is to let the public speak up. The more people speak up, the safer we all are.”
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