Man in Legal Fight to Recover $773M in Bitcoin from Landfill

James Howell is trying to locate his 8,000 $BTC mistakenly disposed of in a landfill, aiming to retrieve the hard drive while complying with legal and environmental regulations.

A UK man who accidentally threw away a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoin in 2013 is now considering purchasing the landfill where it was dumped, the BBC reported.

James Howells' decade-long search for the lost cryptocurrency has taken a new turn after his legal battle to gain access to the site failed. But he isn't giving up on recovering his fortune, now valued at $784 million.

According to Howells, his ex-girlfriend mistook the hard drive for rubbish and discarded it, leading it to end up in Newport's Docks Way landfill.

Over the years, he has repeatedly approached Newport Council to ask for permission to conduct a search but was largely ignored. However, with Bitcoin's value continuing to surge, his determination to retrieve the lost crypto has only grown stronger.

Earlier this year, Howells attempted to sue Newport Council for $646 million, the peak valuation of the bitcoin in early 2024, arguing that their refusal to let him excavate the site had cost him a fortune. However, a judge dismissed his case in January.

Facing legal roadblocks, he has now turned to investors with the idea of purchasing the landfill outright. Even if Howells manages to secure funding, time is not on his side.

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James Howell is trying to locate his 8,000 $BTC mistakenly disposed of in a landfill, aiming to retrieve the hard drive while complying with legal and environmental regulations. pic.twitter.com/eDyVAhym8e

The council plans to shut down the landfill in the coming financial year and has already received planning approval to develop a solar power farm on the land. This could make any future excavation attempts even more challenging.

Whether he succeeds in reclaiming his lost fortune or not, his decade-long pursuit of 8,000 Bitcoins remains one of the most intriguing lost treasure stories of the crypto era.

Searching through the landfill is a monumental task. According to the BBC, the landfill holds more than 1.4 million tonnes of waste, and Howells estimates the hard drive is buried within 100,000 tonnes of it.