Man Whose $775 Million Bitcoin Fortune Lies Buried In A Landfill Now Wants To Buy The Trash Heap

James Howells, who is pursuing a legal battle to retrieve his $775 million Bitcoin BTC/USD fortune, now wants to buy the landfill site where the stash has been allegedly dumped.

What happened: Howells said the option is "very much on the table," according to a BBC report on Sunday. 

“I would be potentially interested in purchasing the landfill site,” he was quoted as saying, a day after reports emerged that Newport City Council was planning to close the site.

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Howells sought permission from the authorities to excavate the site to recover a discarded hard drive containing 8,000 BTC, but the court denied the plea, citing environmental concerns with excavation.

The Wales-based software engineer was surprised by the decision to close the site soon after arguing against its excavation.

The Newport City Council didn't immediately return Benzinga's request for comment on this matter.

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Why It Matters: The unfortunate incident dates back to 2013, when Howells' ex-girlfriend unintentionally put a hard drive containing 8,000 BTC in the trash.

When he lost the legal bid to excavate the site, Howells even turned toward Donald Trump for help, possibly influenced by the U.S. president's pro-cryptocurrency stance.

The 8,000 Bitcoins would be worth $872.91 million at the all-time high price of $109.114 and $775.84 million at the prevailing market price of $96,980.84.

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