The man who threw $ 127 million in bitcoins, seeking permission to rummage in a landfill

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Bitcoin made a lot of people by millionaires. The happy owners of this currency, who bought it for a song a few years ago, are closely following the course - and add zeros to their condition. But there are those who, for one reason or another, have lost their possible wealth, writes Insider.

So, in the summer of 2013, a resident of Wales named James Howells cleaned up the desktop and threw away a hard drive from a broken laptop. Dell. Unfortunately, after a few months, he realized that on that same disk there were 7500 bitcoins, which he had mined back in the 2009 year. By that time, one BTC cost about $ 1000, so cleaning cost him almost 7,5 million dollars. Feelings Howells can only imagine - shock, rage, frustration.

Howells says that when he was mining, Bitcoin was more of a toy for techies. So no one thought to make backup copies of wallets. According to the man, he stopped mining coins when his girlfriend complained about the noise from the laptop and the heat emanating from him. So when next year he spilled lemonade on the device, he decided to disassemble it piece by piece. Moreover, he kept that hard drive for several years before he decided to throw it out.

“Have you ever had a feeling when you throw something in the trash can and at the same time think:“ This is a bad idea. ” So, I had it, ”says Howells.

During the following years, he almost came to terms with the loss, until the rate of Bitcoin began to grow rapidly. So the old wounds made themselves felt: Why, because today this hard drive could be worth 127 million dollars.

Decided to look at the dump

Since its inception, 4 has passed the year, and the desire to start searching for $ 127 million in a landfill is not an easy decision. writes CNBC.

“A modern landfill is a complex engineering project, and working on one can cause all sorts of environmental problems, such as the release of hazardous gases and landfill fires,” Howells says. “This is a big, expensive and risky project.”

Despite all the risks, he wants to try to implement it, but Newport’s urban sonnet is against.

In an interview with a website Wired A spokesman for the city said that in the past, their office was “contacted with the possibility of obtaining part of IT equipment containing bitcoins,” but digging up, storing and processing waste can create “a huge impact on the environment and the surrounding area.”

It is reported that there are about 350 thousand tons of waste at the landfill and another 50 thousand tons are added annually.

“The hardware likely suffered significant corrosion due to the presence of alkali in the debris and gases,” officials noted. Even if the drive is rebuilt, it may not function after prolonged exposure to large amounts of waste and possibly toxic waste.

In addition, an operation that may require special cars and cost millions. And although Howells has "financial support", he needs to get permission, as the landfill is not a public place, and a violation of the rules will be considered a criminal offense.

While the cost of Bitcoin continues to grow, some suggest that Howells lost coins will cost a fortune, and the city council will be required to allow searching.

“And obviously,” Howells says, “they’ll get a good percentage as a gift or donation.”

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