SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A former U.S. Secret Service special agent appeared in court on charges he stole digital currency during an investigation into an online black market that allowed users to buy and sell drugs and other illegal items.
Shaun W. Bridges of Laurel, Maryland, didn’t enter a plea in federal court in San Francisco on Monday. He has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering and was expected to be released after the hearing. Bridges’ attorney, Steven Levin, declined to comment.
Carl M. Force of Baltimore, a former special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration, also has been charged in the case. Force will be in court Monday afternoon.
Force was tasked with establishing communications with a target of the investigation, Ross William Ulbricht, who was convicted on seven drug and conspiracy charges in February.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.
Two former federal agents have been charged with stealing digital currency during their investigation into an online black market that allowed users to buy and sell drugs and other illegal items.
Carl M. Force, 46, of Baltimore, was a special agent with the Drug Enforcement Administration and Shaun W. Bridges, 32, of Laurel, Maryland, was a special agent with the U.S. Secret Service on a task force that investigated the Silk Road marketplace. The website promised its buyers and sellers anonymity by using encryption and bitcoins.
The criminal complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court in San Francisco last Wednesday and unsealed Monday.
Force served as an undercover agent and was tasked with establishing communications with a target of the investigation, Ross William Ulbricht. Force is charged with wire fraud, theft of government property, money laundering and conflict of interest. Bridges is charged with wire fraud and money laundering.
In February, Ulbricht was convicted on seven drug and conspiracy charges alleging he created a multimillion-dollar marketplace for illegal drugs and other contraband on the Internet by adopting the alias Dread Pirate Roberts.
Force was arrested last Friday in Baltimore and will appear in Maryland before U.S. Magistrate Judge J. Mark Coulson on Monday afternoon. Bridges will appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Maria-Elena James in San Francisco on Monday morning.
Comment count on this article reflects comments made on Breitbart.com and Facebook. Visit Breitbart's Facebook Page.