Vitalik Buterin made a statement supporting the advocate of Surprise Altcoin!

Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, publicly questioned and criticized the arrest and punishment of Roger Ver, known as "Bitcoin Jesus," by the U.S., describing the penalty given for alleged tax offenses as "absurd" and politically motivated.

Buterin claimed that Ver is unfairly targeted due to his vocal opposition to coercive government power and advocacy for financial freedom, as one of the leading advocates of Bitcoin Cash, (BCH), criticizing state control and taxation policies in the US for a long time.

Buterin said, "It's very ridiculous to spend the rest of your life in prison for non-violent tax crimes," and added, "The case against Roger seems very politically motivated; there have been many individuals and companies charged with much worse crimes than Roger, like Ross Ulbricht, and sentenced to much lighter penalties than Roger is facing."

Buterin also argued that selectively prosecuting political dissidents in the US is a common tactic used by governments to suppress opposition. Buterin expressed concerns about the US tax system, especially the citizenship-based taxation model and the high exit taxes he described as "excessive" and "harsh" compared to other countries.

Buterin said, "The tax system based on citizenship in the US and the exit tax regime associated with it are extreme; the first is almost not shared by any country in the world and the second is at the upper end of what countries do," and presented the capital gains tax rule of the UK as a lighter alternative.

Buterin completed his remarks by stating that tax-related crimes should be addressed through financial penalties and compensation instead of criminal prosecution.