AmericanKingpin

The unbelievable true story of the man who built a billion-dollar online drug empire from his bedroom—and almost got away with it.

In 2011, twenty-six-year-old libertarian programmer Ross Ulbricht launched the Silk Road, a clandestine website hosted on the Dark Web. The site enabled anyone to trade anything, without government surveillance, including drugs, hacking software, forged passports, counterfeit cash, and poisons.

As the media caught wind of this new website, the federal government launched an epic two-year manhunt for the Dread Pirate Roberts, the elusive proprietor of the Silk Road. However, they had no leads, no witnesses, and no clear jurisdiction.

Despite all this, the Silk Road quickly became a $1.2 billion enterprise, and Ross became its kingpin, enlisting a loyal crew to help run the illegal marketplace. As he got wind of the target on his back, he took drastic steps to protect himself, including ordering a hit on a former employee.

As Ross made plans to disappear forever, the Feds raced against the clock to catch him. Drawing on exclusive access to key players, and the two billion digital words and images Ross left behind, Vanity Fair correspondent and New York Times bestselling author Nick Bilton offers a tale filled with twists and turns, lucky breaks, and unbelievable close calls.

American Kingpin is a story of the boy next door’s ambition gone criminal, spurred on by the clash between the new world of decentralized, anonymous Web advocates and the old world of government control and law. It’s a story filled with unforgettable characters and an astonishing climax that might be dismissed as too outrageous for fiction but is all too real.

作者简介

NickBiltonisSpecialCorrespondentforVanityFair,wherehewritesaboutpolitics,technology,business,andculture,andacontributoratCNBC.HewasalsoacolumnistforTheNewYorkTimesforalmostadecade.InhisNewYorkTimesbestsellerHatchingTwitter,NickBiltongavereadersanastonishinglyreported,riveting,andimpeccablycraftedstoryofthepoliticsandpo...