Virgil Griffith has been granted bail in North Korea case

Virgil Griffith, an Ethereum research scientist, who was earlier arrested for allegedly helping North Korea in bypassing US sanctions, is to be released soon on bail. Judge Vernon Broderick of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York granted Griffith bail on Monday, as per an Inner City Press report. 

According to the report, Griffith’s bail is conditioned on his family had secured a $1 million bond and he will be permitted to return to Alabama with his parents as "moral suasion.” Griffith was denied bail a few days back due to the text messages he sent to his parents about renouncing his US citizenship and starting a money laundering business in North Korea.

Brian Klein, Griffith’s lawyer, argued in the court that Griffith did not actually renounce his citizenship and that he was charged with sanctions violations, not money laundering. According to Inner City Press, despite the Ethereum Foundation being supportive of Griffith, Klein mentioned that Griffin had been suspended from the foundation. 

Griffith was arrested in November after he traveled to North Korea to attend a blockchain conference despite the US Department of State's denial of his application to travel to the country. The authorities alleged that he "discussed how [North Korea] could use blockchain and cryptocurrency technology to launder money and evade sanctions” at the time. He has been arrested for violations of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.