British Man Sues Council Over Lost Bitcoin Hard Drive

According to CoinDesk, a British man has filed a legal claim against a local council in Wales to retrieve a hard drive containing 8,000 BTC that he accidentally discarded in 2013. James Howells, 39, is well-known in Bitcoin circles for his story of losing the hard drive with his bitcoin stash, which he mined in 2009. At the time of disposal, the bitcoins were worth around $1 million, but their value has now surged to approximately $527 million. Over the past decade, Howells has repeatedly requested Newport Council, the proprietors of the landfill where the hard drive ended up, to allow him to retrieve it. He claims his requests have been largely ignored. Howells is now suing the council for damages amounting to 495 million pounds ($646 million), representing the peak valuation of the 8,000 BTC earlier this year. The case is scheduled to be heard in December, but Howells aims to leverage the council into agreeing to an excavation to avoid a legal battle. Howells has assembled a team to conduct a $13 million excavation of the landfill, which includes the council's former head of landfill, who claims to know the specific area where the hard drive is located. The excavation is estimated to take between 18 and 36 months, followed by an additional year of remediation work. However, the council has rejected the request due to environmental concerns. Despite the council's stance, Howells remains optimistic. He stated, 'I'm still allocating 10% of the value for the council even though they have been problematic throughout. That would be 41 million pounds based on today's rate but in the future, it could be hundreds of millions.'