rewrite this title ‘Bitcoin Jesus’ Pays Trump Ally Roger Stone $600,000 to Lobby Against Exit Tax – Decrypt

‘Bitcoin Jesus’ Roger Ver, once known for giving away Bitcoin in the streets of Silicon Valley, has now paid U.S. President Donald Trump’s long-time political confidant, Roger Stone, $600,000 to help him escape a federal criminal case that could land him behind bars for life.

Stone, infamous for his Nixon tattoo and self-styled as a “dirty trickster,” last month filed lobbying disclosures indicating he was hired in February to push lawmakers to dismantle U.S. tax provisions underpinning the Department of Justice’s indictment of Ver.

Specifically, he is targeting the so-called “exit tax,” which applies to Americans renouncing citizenship, and is central to the $48 million in taxes the DOJ claims Ver owes.

Ver’s legal push comes amid a pro-crypto pivot in the Trump administration, where industry backing and regulatory rollbacks have opened the door for clemency bids and policy reversals.

Last April, the DOJ charged Ver with multiple counts, including mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns.

The agency alleges Ver submitted misleading information about his crypto holdings while preparing to expatriate from the U.S. in 2014, and failed to report capital gains after selling roughly $240 million in Bitcoin in 2017.

He was arrested in Spain that same month and released on €150,000 bail in May, under the condition that he surrender his passport and report regularly to authorities while he fights extradition to the U.S.

In January, Ver tweeted a video appeal on tying his case to what he called the “weaponization of justice” under the Biden administration.

“If there’s anybody that knows what it’s like to be the victim of lawfare for spreading American ideals, it’s Donald Trump,” Ver said, as images of Biden and Harris played behind him.

Ver’s legal team has filed a motion to dismiss the case, arguing that the tax laws cited in the indictment are vague, outdated, and provide no clear guidance for early adopters of crypto.

“This prosecution must end,” his attorneys wrote, accusing the DOJ of relying on selectively quoted evidence and misrepresenting privileged communications.

Stone, for his part, insists he hasn’t directly lobbied Trump for a pardon.

“I have not lobbied any official in the executive branch… including the president,” he told The New York Times, clarifying that his role is focused on supporting Ver’s legal team behind the scenes.

But the political subtext is hard to ignore, as last December, Stone’s website published an essay titled “Why Roger Ver Deserves a Presidential Pardon.”

Stone himself is no stranger to the inside of a courtroom or presidential clemency. In 2019, the political consultant and subject of 2017 documentary “Get Me Roger Stone” was convicted of lying to Congress, witness tampering, and obstructing the House Intelligence Committee’s investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Sentenced to 40 months in prison, he never served a day as Trump commuted his sentence in 2020 and later granted a full pardon.

Crypto clemency: who’s in, who’s lobbying

Trump’s second term has already seen a cascade of pardons for crypto-linked figures. In January, he granted a full, unconditional pardon to Ross Ulbricht, the Silk Road founder serving two life sentences plus 40 years.

The U.S. President called the sentence “ridiculous” and said Ulbricht was a victim of the same “lunatics” targeting him.

In March, Trump pardoned BitMEX co-founders Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed, who had pleaded guilty in 2022 to violating the Bank Secrecy Act.

Now, other crypto personalities are circling. Sam Bankman-Fried, founder of the collapsed FTX exchange and currently serving a 25-year sentence for defrauding customers, has pivoted politically.

In February, he expressed admiration for Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, criticized the Biden administration’s “inefficiency,” and hinted at ongoing talks with Republican operatives.

“I’ve been working with Republicans a lot more than had been previously thought,” SBF told The New York Sun.

For his part, Ver may struggle to secure a pardon from the Oval Office. In January, Trump ally Elon Musk argued that by renouncing his U.S. citizenship, Ver had lost his right to a pardon, tweeting that, “Membership has its privileges.”