A British man, James Howells, has faced another setback in his quest to recover a hard drive containing the private keys to approximately 8,000 Bitcoin.
The UK Court of Appeals has rejected his appeal to obtain a permit to search the Docksway landfill in Newport, where the hard drive was inadvertently discarded in 2013. The Bitcoin is now valued at around $660 million.
In a recent post on March 14, Howells expressed his frustration with the legal system. He stated, “Appeal request to the Royal Court of Appeal: refused.” Howells added, “The Great British Injustice System strikes again…
The state always protects the state.” He revealed that his next step would be to take his case to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR).
Judge Christopher Nugee of the Royal Court of Appeal rejected Howells’ application, citing no “real prospect of success” and no compelling reason for it to be heard. This decision was based on a court filing shared on March 13.
It follows an earlier dismissal by High Court Judge Andrew Keyser on January 9, who similarly concluded that there was “no realistic prospect” of Howells’ case succeeding at a full trial.
Howells plans to claim at the ECHR that the UK High Court and Court of Appeal breached his rights to property and a fair trial under Article 1 of Protocol 1 and Article 6 of the ECHR. He views this as his “last legal option” to exhaust.
In a note to Cointelegraph, Howells emphasized, “The British establishment want to sweep this under the carpet, and I will not let them. It will not go away — no matter how long it takes!”
Although the ECHR cannot overrule UK court decisions, a favorable verdict would prompt UK courts to consider whether their legislation was interpreted in a way that aligns with ECHR provisions. Howells intends to file a claim with the ECHR in the coming weeks.
The court filings follow repeated rejections from the Newport City Council, which has refused to allow Howells to search through the landfill. The site is reportedly set to close during the UK’s 2025-2026 financial year, according to a BBC News report on February 9. This adds urgency to Howells’ quest, as time is running out to recover his lost Bitcoin.
Howells’ situation highlights the importance of securely managing self-custodied cryptocurrency funds. Few predicted Bitcoin would reach its current value when Howells lost his hard drive, but his case serves as a cautionary tale for crypto investors.
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