Roger Ver, a businessman who became known by the nickname “Bitcoin Jesus,” after being one of the first to make a serious investment in bitcoin (BTC) in early 2011, is publicly denouncing his arrest and extradition to the United States. United were motivated by their opinions and activism in favor of cryptocurrencies, especially the first of them, created by Satoshi Nakamoto.
The businessman was arrested at the end of April in Spain for tax evasion and later extradited to face a sentence of 109 years in prison. But he is convinced that the charges against him are a smokescreen and that the real motive behind his persecution is his constant defense and promotion of bitcoin as an alternative to the traditional financial system.
“I think they’re just angry.” [el gobierno de Estados Unidos] for my lack of obedience and the lack of, you know, kissing his ring,” Ver said in a recent interview with American political commentator Tucker Carlson.
See, he was released from prison on May 17 after paying USD 160,000, as reported by NoticiasVE. Currently, he is under a regime of presentation before the court that is handling his case and during his conversation with Carlson he stated that he was arrested just after the launch of his book in which he accuses US intelligence agencies of “kidnapping” bitcoin with the idea of preventing it from becoming true competition for the dollar and other fiat currencies.
Bitcoin is an incredible tool for freedom around the world and governments are the opposite of freedom; They don’t like freedom, they don’t like cryptocurrencies and that’s why they are trying to shut me up. They don’t want the truth about bitcoin to be known. Which can be used to empower people to have control over their own lives, beyond the control of politicians who have never met you and don’t know about you or your life and most of them don’t care about you one bit .
Roger Ver in conversation with Tucker Carlson
Ver argues that his arrest is an attack on financial freedom and people’s ability to choose their own money. “We have an alternative where every individual anywhere on the planet can be in charge of their own money completely, without needing permission from any politician or government anywhere in the world,” he said.
For the businessman, the covert actions of US agencies managed to manipulate the development of Bitcoin to turn it into a speculative asset, preventing it from becoming a currency of daily use.
“Let’s defend freedom”
It is not the first time that Roger Ver denounces political persecution; He also did it in the past when he faced the American justice system after being accused of selling firecrackers online. That event landed him in prison for 10 months and, when speaking about it, he was also convinced that his imprisonment was motivated by political implications.
He believes that his case exposes what everyone on the planet is exposed to and that is why he asks for support to avoid spending the rest of his life in prison. In itself, it asks everyone to speak out in favor of freedom through the site FreeRogerNow.org.
The most useful way to stop it [su encarcelación definitiva] I think it is making the public speak out. The more people speak out, the safer we will all be. I don’t want to see everyone end up imprisoned inside some kind of financial prison that they are building.
Roger Ver, one of the first investors in bitcoin.
On social media, there is already a large movement of support for Ver’s cause. Many believe that he is indeed being unfairly prosecuted for his belief in the universal value of cryptocurrencies to free humanity from government tyranny. His vision terrifies Big Brother. The man chases him,” as highlighted by one user on X.
Another user notes that “the idea that Roger would be in prison for the rest of his life is the definition of cruel injustice.” And he himself regrets other facts that he considers should not be left aside, such as Ver expressed his disillusionment with Bitcoin and switched to Bitcoin Cash, an antagonistic project. born from the fork of the main cryptocurrency on the market.
He also highlighted that Ver became an ally “of some of the worst scammers in the business,” such as Craig Wright, also known as Faketoshi, which he later regretted. None of these points were touched on during his interview with Carlson, but what is on the minds of many right now is that one of the first investors in bitcoin does not deserve to spend the rest of his life in prison just for not paying taxes on all his assets after having renounced his US citizenship.