James Howells, a British computer engineer, is persistently pursuing his dream of finding 7,500 Bitcoins (equivalent to 669 million USD) lost in a landfill in Newport since 2013. Although the chances of success are like winning the lottery many times in a row, Howells is determined not to give up, even considering issuing tokens or NFTs to raise funds from the community.

The Difficult Journey to Find Bitcoin Treasure

According to Howells, the hard drive containing this huge amount of Bitcoin was accidentally thrown away due to a mistake by his ex-girlfriend. Since then, he has repeatedly requested permission from the government to excavate the landfill but has been refused. Recently, he continued to fight legally to gain the right to search, even considering the option of buying the entire landfill if necessary.

Waste management experts say the chances of finding the hard drive are extremely slim, only about 1 in 902 million. Furthermore, even if found, the chances of recovering the data are almost zero (0.00000011%) because the device has been buried for 12 years under layers of toxic waste, exposed to heat, leachate and methane gas.

Mark Hall, a waste management expert, commented: "The hard drive could be rusted, corroded, or even melted. If found, it may only have museum value rather than being reused."

The landfill is also not an easy place to excavate. In addition to the risk of fire and landslides, there are also potential risks of poisoning from bacteria and toxic gases. This makes the search even more difficult and dangerous.

Howells Will Not Give Up

Despite all the opposition, Howells remained steadfast in his belief. He believes the data on the hard drive could still be recovered, even if only a small portion of the private key is intact. The rest, Howells says, could be decrypted using brute force.

“A 1 in 902 million number is a number that someone made up out of thin air,” Howells counters. “I have a team that worked with NASA, they know how to recover data. I don’t need to hear from people who have never done it before.”

Tokens or NFTs – Fundraising Solutions?

If the landfill is not accessible, Howells doesn’t rule out crowdfunding through the issuance of tokens or NFTs related to his story. However, this is still only a backup plan.

It is also worth noting that the Newport government plans to turn the landfill into a solar farm by 2025-2026, making Howells’ path to finding his Bitcoins even more difficult.

Will It Work?

Despite the slim chances, Howells remains confident that if he perseveres long enough, he will find his Bitcoin treasure. While experts say it is a futile effort, Howells believes that anything is possible.

If he fails to find the hard drive, he may become a billionaire by selling “Dumpster Mining Bitcoin” tokens before actually finding the BTC. His story has become a phenomenon in the cryptocurrency community and continues to attract widespread public attentio