UK Man Sues for Access to Landfill in $500M Bitcoin Search

James Howells is taking legal action against Newport City Council to recover a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoins he accidentally discarded in 2013.

James Howells, an IT engineer from Newport, Wales, has filed a lawsuit against the local council for denying access to a landfill where he believes his lost hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoins is located.
The lawsuit seeks £495 million ($647 million) in damages, reflecting the peak value of the Bitcoins, as Howells aims to leverage the case to gain excavation rights.
Howells has offered the council 10% of the recovered Bitcoin value and assembled a team to conduct the excavation at no cost to the council, though environmental concerns have been cited as a major barrier.
The case is scheduled for a court hearing in December, with Howells prepared to take the legal battle to the UK's Supreme Court if necessary.
Despite the financial and legal challenges, Howells remains determined to recover the hard drive, which was accidentally discarded by his partner over a decade ago.