The man accused of running the Silk Road. Facebook Blake Benthall, the man accused of running the deep web's notorious illegal marketplace called Silk Road, reportedly confessed minutes after being arrested Wednesday in San Francisco.

Ars Technica reported from Benthall's first court hearing Thursday, which lasted about 15 minutes. Federal prosecutor Kathryn Haun reportedly told the court that Benthall had already admitted to running the Silk Road.

"Mr. Benthall did admit to everything after receiving his Miranda rights — that he was the administrator of Silk Road 2.0," Haun said to the court.

Benthall is charged with one count of conspiring to commit narcotics trafficking, one count of conspiring to commit computer hacking, one count of conspiring to traffic in fraudulent identification documents, and one count of money laundering conspiracy.

The FBI shut down the Silk Road 2.0 site on Thursday after monitoring the site and Benthall's alleged involvement. If convicted, he could face life in prison.

SpaceX confirmed to Business Insider that Benthall was previously employed at the California-based rocket development company founded by Elon Musk. Benthall worked as a flight software engineer from Dec. 9, 2013, to Feb. 21, 2014.

Additionally, Benthall proudly posted online of his experience with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. His Twitter bio reads "rocket scientist, bitcoin dreamer." The FBI's criminal complaint against Benthall claims that the Silk Road's employees were paid exclusively in bitcoin and that Benthall ran the site's "tumbler" that ensured transactions remained anonymous.

A LinkedIn profile that appears to belong to Benthall shows he worked at a charity in his native Texas, helping to design and maintain its website.

He went on to work as a volunteer programmer for a project that brought the Linux operating system to the newly launched iPod, before creating a video game hosting company in his teenage years, according to the LinkedIn profile.

The young programmer attended a Florida college from 2007 to 2008, where he organised concerts and performed as part of the school's band, the LinkedIn profile shows.

Benthall also ran a tech incubator out of his San Francisco home at the same time the FBI accuses him of overseeing the world's largest online drug market, Forbes' Ryan Mac reports.

The FBI accuses Benthall of using bitcoin gained from running the Silk Road to buy a Tesla car.

One day before the Silk Road 2.0's first birthday, the FBI arrested Benthall and raided his home in San Francisco's Mission district.

On Thursday, the anniversary of the Silk Road 2.0's launch, the arrest was revealed and the drug marketplace taken down as part of Operation Onymous, a cross-continent scheme involving the FBI and European police.