British IT engineer James Howells has filed a $647 million lawsuit against Newport City Council after accidentally throwing away a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoin BTC $64,980.70 in 2013.
At the time, the Bitcoin stored on the drive was worth about $1.3 million; however, the value of Bitcoin has skyrocketed since then, with the lost stash now valued at nearly $514 million.
Howells has been trying to recover the lost drive for over a decade. WalesOnline reported the real aim of the lawsuit is to pressure the council into allowing a landfill search to avoid a drawn-out court battle.
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Howells has proposed an $11 million plan to safely excavate the drive, assuring the council that the initiative wouldn't cost them anything. He even offered to give the council 10% of the Bitcoin's value if they agreed, but the council has rejected every offer.
The council keeps denying the landfill search due to doubts about both the practicality and legality of the plan. Additionally, there are environmental risks like the possible release of hazardous materials, such as asbestos and methane.
A court hearing is scheduled for December, where the case will be thoroughly reviewed, and Howells will present his arguments in hopes of finally recovering the lost Bitcoin.
In other news, users lost over $70,000 in crypto to a wallet drainer app disguised as WalletConnect.
