James Howells is suing Newport City Council for around £500 million to recoup 8,000 bitcoins (BTC) he says he lost in a mix-up that resulted in his hard drive being dumped at a recycling centre in 2013.

Howells is seeking just under half a billion pounds, equivalent to $646.4 million, according to local media. This is the highest valuation of his bitcoin holdings since the start of the year, when the cryptocurrency hit an all-time high (ATH) of $73,737.

However, he stressed that the amount does not reflect the actual situation. Instead, it is aimed at “forcing” the council to allow excavations at his landfill to avoid a legal battle.

Howells has assembled a team of experts willing to carry out the £10 million ($13 million) excavation at no cost to the council. He also offers to split 10% of the value of the recovered coins, which he estimates could be worth around $53.5 million based on current prices.

Howells claims he lost the hard drive while cleaning out his office due to a misunderstanding with his then partner.

As an early adopter of Bitcoin, he claims to have mined 8,000 coins with minimal effort. However, their value has skyrocketed since then, and if some industry experts’ predictions come true, the coins could be worth billions in the future.

After losing access to his bitcoins, Howells has been working on recovery full-time since leaving his job in IT. The lawsuit states that the lost hard drive is located in “Cell 2 – Area 2” of the Docksway landfill, and experts estimate an 80% chance of retrieving the data. They estimate the excavation could take between 18 and 36 months, followed by a year of environmental remediation.

His expert group claims they can “safely excavate” the site using AI. They also promise to help upgrade the landfill, which has repeatedly breached its permit since 2020 due to excessive levels of hazardous waste. Despite this, Newport Council has allegedly ignored Howells’s proposals.

Meanwhile, the council’s lawyers claim they legally disposed of the hard drive because it was discarded, while his lawyers claim he never intended to dump it.

The group described Howells’s claims as “weak” and said the excavation was prohibited due to environmental concerns. They also stressed that they conduct rigorous monitoring and the allegations are attempts to distract from the weaknesses of his claims.

The case will go to court in December, and Howells vows to continue trying to get the hard drive back until a judge formally stops it.

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