the us justice department announced  charges on monday against two former federal agents accused of  stealing the digital currency bitcoin during the investigation  of the underground drug marketplace silk road carl force, a former drug enforcement administration agent,  and shaun bridges, a special agent with the secret service, were  charged in a criminal complaint filed in san francisco federal  court with offenses including wire fraud and money laundering silk road was an underground website where people bought  drugs and other illicit goods using bitcoin digital currency by  the time authorities shut it down in october 2013, silk road had  generated around $200 million in sales, prosecutors said agents: carl force (left), a former dea agent, and shaun bridges (right), a special agent with the secret service, have been accused of stealing thousands of bitcoins during an investigation into silk road  website: silk road was an underground website where people bought drugs and other illicit goods using bitcoin digital currency  authorities said it was operated by ross ulbricht, 30, under  the alias 'dread pirate roberts' a federal jury in manhattan  found ulbricht guilty in february of charges including  conspiracy to commit drug trafficking and money laundering force, 46, and bridges, 32, belonged to a baltimore based  federal task force investigating the silk road force had a  prominent role in the probe, authorities said, as he was the  lead undercover agent in communication with ulbricht but prosecutors said while force spoke with ulbricht using  an officially sanctioned alias, he also created unauthorized  online personas to communicate with 'dread pirate roberts' using those aliases, force extorted $250,000 from ulbricht  and later offered to sell him information about the government's  investigation for $100,000, the complaint said prosecutors said force also stole $90,000 worth of bitcoins  that ulbricht paid him in under an officially sanctioned alias  used for the undercover investigation authorities said bridges, 32, meanwhile diverted to his  personal account over $800,000 worth of bitcoin that he  controlled during the silk road investigation investigation: force, 46, and bridges, 32, belonged to a baltimore based federal task force investigating the silk road the two men are accused of stealing bitcoins (pictured) during the operation  by the time authorities shut silk road down in october 2013, the website had generated around $200 million in sales, prosecutors said the homepage to silk road 20, allegedly an underground drug market, is seen in a screenshot after it was closed by us authorities november 6, 2014  process: this infographic purportedly reveals how money transactions on silk road were handled  force was arrested in baltimore on friday and appeared in  court there on monday bridges surrendered on monday and was  released after appearing in court in san francisco joshua dratel, ulbricht's lawyer, in a statement on monday  said that prosecutors only revealed information about the 'monumental scandal' five weeks before trial after keeping the  investigation secret for nine months 'it is clear from this complaint that fundamentally the  government's investigation of mr ulbricht lacked any integrity,  and was wholly and fatally compromised from the inside,' dratel  said steven levin, a lawyer for bridges, said he maintains his  innocence ivan bates, force's attorney, did not respond to a  request for comment the case is us v force, us district court, northern  district of california, no 15 mj 70370
the us justice department carl force dea shaun bridges the secret service silk road force bridges baltimore the silk road . 
the us justice department has announced charges against two former federal agents accused of stealing the digital currency . carl force, a former dea agent,and shaun bridges, a special agent with the secret service, were charged in a criminal complaint . silk road was an underground website where people bought drugs and other illicit goods using bitcoin digital currency . force, 46, and bridges, 32, belonged to a baltimore based federal task force investigating the silk road . force had a prominent role in the probe, authorities said, and was the lead undercover agent in communication with the website's alleged operator 