Early Bitcoin investor Roger Ver, known as "Bitcoin Jesus," has filed a lawsuit against Spain at the European Court of Human Rights to block his extradition to the United States. Ver faces U.S. charges including tax evasion, mail fraud, and filing false returns, which carry a potential 109-year prison sentence. The U.S. Department of Justice alleges he owes $48 million in unpaid taxes from 2014, when he renounced his U.S. citizenship and triggered an "exit tax" on unrealized capital gains from his Bitcoin holdings. Prosecutors further claim Ver concealed $240 million in crypto gains through U.S.-registered companies in 2017.
Ver was arrested in Spain in April 2024 and released on bail. His lawsuit, filed in June 2025, argues Spanish authorities violated his fundamental rights by approving the extradition. In December 2024, Ver moved to dismiss U.S. charges, calling the exit tax unconstitutional. He has also appealed to former U.S. President Donald Trump for a pardon, drawing parallels to Trump's pardon of Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht. While Ulbricht and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin voiced support, Tesla CEO Elon Musk publicly opposed clemency, stating: "No pardon for Ver."
Market reactions include Polymarket lowering Ver's pardon odds after Musk's comments. Ver, founder of Bitcoin.com and key figure behind Bitcoin Cash (BCH), remains a polarizing figure. He maintains the case is politically motivated, citing past government "persecution" over unlicensed fireworks sales.