A local investor is ready to bankrupt the city for the sake of his lost bitcoins.
A Welsh investor who accidentally lost 8,000 bitcoins a decade ago by throwing a hard drive with a wallet in the trash is now threatening to sue the local council that controls the landfill where the disk ended up. His claims may reach $557 million.
Newport City Council (NCC) has repeatedly denied James Howells permission to dig a landfill in search of his bitcoins. However, according to the Telegraph, Howells is preparing to file a lawsuit against the council, trying to stop any work at the landfill.
The alleged lawsuit seeks £446 million ($557 million) in compensation, which corresponds to the maximum recorded value of the bitcoins he lost. By filing the lawsuit, Howells threatens to bankrupt the NCC, saying that the recently declared bankrupt Birmingham City Council "will not be the only council under the Labour Party to go bankrupt this year."
In an open letter to the council dated September 4, Howells requested permission to start excavation at the landfill site by September 18, as well as to conduct a legal review of the legality of the council's decisions during the entire bitcoin incident.
James lost his BTC in 2013 after cleaning up his old office, throwing away his bitcoin wallet. 8,000 bitcoins were valued at £446 million at the time and approximately £166 million ($207 million) today.
The council for 10 years stubbornly denied Howells the opportunity to recover the lost bitcoins, claiming that they "can not be in our landfill."
The council representative noted that excavation "is not possible under our environmental permit" and that such work would have a huge negative impact on the surrounding area.
A Welsh investor who accidentally lost 8,000 bitcoins a decade ago by throwing a hard drive with a wallet in the trash is now threatening to sue the local council that controls the landfill where the disk ended up. His claims may reach $557 million.
Newport City Council (NCC) has repeatedly denied James Howells permission to dig a landfill in search of his bitcoins. However, according to the Telegraph, Howells is preparing to file a lawsuit against the council, trying to stop any work at the landfill.
The alleged lawsuit seeks £446 million ($557 million) in compensation, which corresponds to the maximum recorded value of the bitcoins he lost. By filing the lawsuit, Howells threatens to bankrupt the NCC, saying that the recently declared bankrupt Birmingham City Council "will not be the only council under the Labour Party to go bankrupt this year."
In an open letter to the council dated September 4, Howells requested permission to start excavation at the landfill site by September 18, as well as to conduct a legal review of the legality of the council's decisions during the entire bitcoin incident.
James lost his BTC in 2013 after cleaning up his old office, throwing away his bitcoin wallet. 8,000 bitcoins were valued at £446 million at the time and approximately £166 million ($207 million) today.
The council for 10 years stubbornly denied Howells the opportunity to recover the lost bitcoins, claiming that they "can not be in our landfill."
The council representative noted that excavation "is not possible under our environmental permit" and that such work would have a huge negative impact on the surrounding area.
