Judge halts $765M Bitcoin landfill recovery attempt
Court rejects man's decade-long bid to recover crypto lost in British landfill
James Howells, a British IT worker, has lost his decade-long legal fight to recover a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoin—now worth an estimated $765 million—from a landfill in Newport, Wales.
A High Court judge ruled against his request to excavate the site or receive compensation, citing environmental concerns, legal ownership, and a missed statute of limitations.
Howells mined the BTC in 2009, back when cryptocurrency had little to no value. In 2013, the hard drive containing the wallet was mistakenly thrown away during a house clean-up, and by the time he realized his error, it was buried under thousands of tonnes of waste.
With Bitcoin's price soaring more than 80% in 2024 alone, the value of the lost fortune has only grown, making the loss even more painful for Howells.
In his lawsuit, Howells asked Newport City Council for permission to excavate a specific 100,000-tonne area of the landfill, which he identified using location data.
He offered the council and local community a share of the recovered Bitcoin. However, the council refused, citing significant environmental and health risks associated with disturbing the landfill, which contains more than 1.4 million tonnes of waste.
During the case, Newport City Council’s lawyers argued that existing environmental permits prohibit excavation and that the hard drive legally became council property when it entered the landfill. The court also noted that Howells knew the hard drive’s location in 2013 but waited until 2024 to file legal action, far exceeding the six-year statute of limitations.
'This ruling has taken everything from me'
Following the court's decision, Howells expressed his frustration. “This ruling has taken everything from me and left me with nothing,” he said, adding that he felt he wasn’t given a fair chance to make his case in full. Despite assembling a team of recovery experts and securing funding, he said his efforts to engage the council over the years were repeatedly ignored.
I lost, they won.
— James Howells (@howelzy) January 9, 2025
Might appeal.
See what happens.
It is what it is.
End of story…
For Now!!! 🤬
Howells believes the hard drive, though buried for more than a decade, could still be operational thanks to its anti-corrosive materials. However, with the court blocking his efforts, the $765 million fortune appears destined to remain lost.
Howells’ story highlights the importance of safeguarding private keys and digital wallets. With Bitcoin's price continuing to climb, he estimates the value of his lost cryptocurrency could reach $1 billion in the coming years—a stark reminder of the high stakes in the digital asset space.
