Trial set to begin for 'Dread Pirate Roberts,' accused Silk Road mastermind

NEW YORK CITY , N.Y., Jan. 13 (UPI) -- Jury selection began Tuesday in the trial of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged mastermind behind the underground Internet marketplace Silk Road that allowed users to buy everything from drugs to handcuff keys.

Prosecutors said Ulbricht, often described as a mild-mannered Eagle Scout, built a billion-dollar enterprise through Silk Road using the pseudonym Dread Pirate Roberts, a reference to the 1987 movie The Princess Bride. Ulbricht, who faces seven charges including drug trafficking and money laundering, has pleaded not guilty and denies creating Silk Road. He is also facing a murder-for-hire charge in federal court in Maryland.

Silk Road, sometimes referred to as eBay for drugs, was shut down in 2013 when Ulbricht was arrested in California. The case is being closely watched by Bitcoin and Internet privacy advocates. Silk road only accepted bitcoins, an electronic currency that keeps the users' transactions private.

The tech community is also watching the proceedings as a test of law enforcement's ability to shut down illegal Internet enterprises and target cybercriminals.

Ulbricht, known to his roommates as Josh Terrey, was arrested on Oct. 1, 2013, shortly after he logged on to his computer at a public library. He was indicted in February on charges that he bought and sold drugs with bitcoins. In November, the U.S. Marshals Service auctioned some 50,000 bitcoins, worth an estimated $19 million, seized from Ulbricht.