Regret can drive a person to the brink of obsession. He discarded it back in 2013, and as time passes, the likelihood of ever retrieving it diminishes. It might have been crushed amidst a heap of other refuse, or perhaps its components no longer function as they should.

He seems utterly fixated on that lost balance, even disregarding the ramifications of sifting through the accumulating trash.

If I were in his shoes, I too would likely harbor profound remorse for what transpired. 8K BTC is no trifling sum in today's context. It would undoubtedly impel me to act irrationally, diving headfirst into that landfill, meticulously scouring every fragment of refuse in search of it.

I think him lashing out at the city council and threatening to sue them doesn't make bitcoin look good.

wherever his hard drive is, if it's in that trash dump i don't see how even a data recovery expert could get anything off of it. it's probably been crushed, cracked, corroded, etc. lost cause. his big mistake was throwing it away in the first place but that was his fault no one elses. he lost those bitcoin a long time ago. and they're not coming back.