- The landfill in Wales, where a hard drive packed with 8,000 Bitcoin mined in 2009 is presumed to be buried, is on the verge of closure, leaving little hope for recovery.
- The planned closure of the landfill marks the end of James Howells’ 12-year battle with the Newport municipal government to recover his lost hard drive.
James Howells, a Welsh computer engineer from Newport, Wales, has officially lost his long-standing legal battle to recover a hard drive containing more than $768 million worth of Bitcoin. The hard drive, which holds the private keys to 8,000 BTC mined in 2009, was mistakenly discarded by his partner in 2013 and ended up in a landfill in Wales.
Howells believes that his lost hard drive lies within a 100,000-tonne section of a vast landfill containing over 1.4 million tonnes of waste. As the site nears its planned closure, he sees a potential opportunity to claim ownership of the land. By doing so, he hopes to bypass previous legal and environmental restrictions that have prevented excavation.
Attempts to Negotiate With the City Council
Realizing the immense value of his lost digital fortune, Howells has repeatedly appealed to the Newport City Council, requesting access to search for the device. In 2021, he proposed a deal offering the city 25% of the recovered Bitcoin, then valued at approximately £200 million. At Bitcoin’s peak price in 2021, the lost treasure would have been worth over $500 million.
In addition, Howells pledged £52.5 million ($71.7 million) to be distributed among Newport’s 316,000 residents, which would have equated to £175 per person. However, despite his offers, the Newport City Council has continuously denied Howells’ requests, arguing that excavation is not feasible under its environmental permit.
In December 2024, Howells sued the Newport City Council for £495 million, asserting that the hard drive remained his property. Still, the council countered that any discarded property in the landfill legally belongs to them.
As we stated in a recent report, the case reached the High Court, where Judge Keyser KC ruled against Howells on January 9. The judge determined that Howells’ lawsuit had “no realistic prospect” of succeeding in a full trial, effectively closing the case and ending his 12-year battle.
In 2024, with Bitcoin climbing above the $100,000 threshold for the first time ever, Howells’ story resurfaced, capturing renewed attention regarding his lost fortune. This incredible rally in cryptocurrency delivered over 130% in returns for the year. However, despite Bitcoin’s rally and his persistence, the legal system has now shut the door on his final hope of reclaiming his lost digital fortune.
Bitcoin has dropped by 1.1% in the past 24 hours and is trading at $96,850. Howells’ experience serves as a stark reminder of the importance of securely managing digital assets, particularly private keys, which are essential for accessing and controlling Bitcoin holdings.
