The US government auctioned off over 44,000 Bitcoins yesterday

The United States Marshals Service (USMS) has begun auctioning off 44,341 bitcoins seized from Silk Road operator Ross Ulbricht, marking the end of a process that began in June 2014.

     Ulbricht, who forfeited a total of 144,000 bitcoins while operating the Silk Road black market under the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts,” was sent to prison in May despite multiple requests for arbitration.

     Today’s auction, the fourth since the June 2014 auction of 30,000 bitcoins, runs from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. local time.

     According to the USMS, the auction will sell 22 blocks in total. The first 21 blocks contain 2,000 bitcoins each, while the last block contains 2,341 bitcoins.

     Registration for the auction began on October 19 and will run until 12:00 pm EST on November 2. Confirmed participating companies include Genesis Trading, a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, and Bitcoin hedge fund Binary Financial.

     All funds seized in the Silk Road investigation will be auctioned off by the U.S. government. Bitcoin from Silk Road users and the marketplace has previously been sold in the same manner.