Roger Ver attempts to block his extradition to the United States by petitioning the European Court of Human Rights after being arrested in Spain in 2024. He faces up to 109 years in prison for tax fraud.
The U.S. tax authorities are demanding 48 million dollars related to unpaid “exit tax” and undisclosed crypto sales through his former U.S.-based companies.
His defense strategy includes a constitutional challenge to the tax and a plea for presidential pardon addressed to Donald Trump.
The “Bitcoin Jesus” Crusade Against Extradition
Roger Ver is determined not to spend his last days behind U.S. bars. The man who made a fortune in Bitcoin before Wall Street caught on has just petitioned the European Court of Human Rights to block his extradition. The goal: to cancel the agreement between Spain, where he was arrested in 2024, and the United States, seeking his capture.
Washington wants to try him for large-scale tax fraud. The bill is hefty. According to the Department of Justice, Ver owes nearly 48 million dollars to the U.S. tax authorities. A colossal tax debt linked to his Bitcoin sales and distributions received through his American companies, MemoryDealers and Agilestar.
A Former American, but Still Accountable
The heart of the dispute: his renunciation of U.S. citizenship in 2014. By becoming a citizen of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Roger Ver thought he was leaving Uncle Sam behind. But not so fast.
According to U.S. law, any wealthy expatriate must pay an “exit tax,” a tax calculated as if all their assets were sold on the day of renunciation. Yet Ver allegedly failed to declare his Bitcoin assets correctly, even as their value skyrocketed between 2011 and 2014.
But that’s not all. In 2017, U.S. authorities claim he also concealed 240 million dollars in crypto sales through his companies, still based in the United States.
A Strong Legal Strategy, All the Way to the White House
Facing a theoretical 109-year prison sentence, Ver fought back. He challenges the validity of the “exit tax”, deeming it unconstitutional, and argues that the indictment is based on “grounds too vague to be legal“.
He doesn’t stop there. In December, he officially requested a presidential pardon. A risky gamble… but not absurd in America in 2025, where Donald Trump has just been re-elected. And where the former president has never hidden his favor towards certain “digital pioneers“.
The “Free Roger” Divides the Crypto Community
Behind the scenes, a support movement is emerging. Under the #FreeRoger hashtag, some Web3 actors are calling for his release. Even Ross Ulbricht, founder of Silk Road, pardoned by Trump and released from a life sentence, has publicly taken a stand.
But the figure divides. For others, Ver crossed the line when he renounced American citizenship to evade tax obligations. What is at stake goes beyond his case alone: the outcome of this affair could set a precedent for all expatriate crypto investors.
