The Random Darknet Shopper, a robot that bought 10 ecstasy pills, a pair of fake Diesel jeans, a baseball cap with a hidden camera, a stash can, a pair of Nike trainers, 200 Chesterfield cigarettes, a set of fire brigade-issued master keys, a Hungarian passport, a fake Louis Vuitton handbag and a Lord of the Rings e-book collection online using bitcoins has been released by the Swiss police.
The robot and all its purchases, except for the ecstasy pills, were returned to !Mediengruppe Bitnik, the London based Swiss artists group that designed the robot to randomly purchase items online from the illegal markets using bitcoin and deliver the items to an exhibition: “The Darknet: From Memes to Onionland” located at The Kunst Halle Sankt Gallen, Switzerland. On the morning of January 12, the day after the three-month exhibition was closed, Swiss police confiscated the robot and all the exhibition items.
Carment Weisskopf and Domagoj Smoljo, the embattled creators said, “At the same time we also received the order for withdrawal of prosecution. In the order for withdrawal of prosecution the public prosecutor states that the possession of Ecstasy was indeed a reasonable means for the purpose of sparking public debate about questions related to the exhibition. The public prosecution also asserts that the over weighing interest in the questions raised by the art work ‘Random Darknet Shopper’ justify the exhibition of the drugs as artifacts, even if the exhibition does hold a small risk of endangerment of third parties through the drugs exhibited.”
A judge declared that it was acceptable to display contraband as an art project, and that the robot was not committing a crime. Police has withdrawn any further action against the artists. “We as well as the Random Darknet Shopper have been cleared of all charges. This is a great day for the bot, for us and for freedom of art!” said the art group.
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they arrested a /robot/. wow. just frakking wow.
In the USA the artist would face a myriad of trouble.
In the US they would have been shot. And then accused of attacking the police.
GAS THE MEATBAGS
ROBOT INDEPENDENCE NOW