Ross Ulbricht, alleged founder of the online drug market Silk Road, appeared briefly in court today for the first time since being transferred to New York City. According to Forbes' Andy Greenberg, he didn't say much, but his lawyer Joshua Dratel told reporters that Ulbricht wasn't Dread Pirate Roberts, the pseudonym used by the drug lord behind Silk Road "The evidence can't establish that he is who they say he is, or that he's done what they say he's done."

Meanwhile, a new Dread Pirate Roberts has surfaced on the Dark Net and today launched Silk Road 2.0 amid much hype. It's aesthetically almost identical to the original, and was inundated with so many hits it crashed in the first few hours of opening. But many users are expressing unease at the idea of trying to relaunch something that was just weeks ago so spectacularly taken down. One former Silk Road Dealer I emailed told me he's avoiding Silk Road 2.0 for now. "At the very least its going to have a huge target on it back."

[Screenshot of Silk Road 2.0 via AllThingsVice]