Keonne Rodriguez, Cryptocurrency Money Laundering, New York 2025
Samourai Wallet Co-Founder Sentenced to 5 Years for Cryptocurrency Money Laundering
New York, NY - In a major blow to cryptocurrency laundering operations, Keonne Rodriguez, the co-founder of Samourai Wallet, was sentenced to 5 years in prison for his role in facilitating over $237 million in illegal transactions. Rodriguez, the Chief Executive Officer of Samourai, was found guilty of participating in a conspiracy to operate a money transmitting business in which he knowingly transmitted criminal proceeds.
According to the indictment, Rodriguez and his co-founder, William Lonergan Hill, developed Samourai as a service for transmitting criminal proceeds. The mobile application, which began operating around 2015, featured two services: Whirlpool and Ricochet. Whirlpool was a Bitcoin mixing service that coordinated batches of Bitcoin exchanges between groups of Samourai users, making it difficult for law enforcement agencies to trace funds back to their origins. Ricochet, on the other hand, enabled users to introduce additional intermediate transactions, known as 'hops,' between sending and receiving addresses, further obscuring the trail of illicit transactions.
The scale of these operations was considerable, with over 80,000 Bitcoin, valued at over $2 billion at the time, passing through these services. Samourai collected fees for both services, estimated to have a total value of more than $6 million. Rodriguez and Hill actively promoted Samourai to criminal users and encouraged criminal activity, often touting its ability to launder dirty Bitcoin.
On November 6, 2025, U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote sentenced Rodriguez to 5 years in prison. Hill, the Chief Technology Officer of Samourai, was sentenced to 4 years in prison on November 19, 2025, for his role in the conspiracy. The sentences reflect the serious consequences of laundering known criminal proceeds, regardless of the technology used or whether the proceeds are in the form of fiat or cryptocurrency.
'The sentences the defendants received send a clear message that laundering known criminal proceeds—regardless of the technology used or whether the proceeds are in the form of fiat or cryptocurrency—will face serious consequences,' said Attorney for the United States Nicolas Roos.
The case serves as a reminder of the importance of holding accountable those who profit by helping criminals hide their criminal proceeds. The U.S. Attorney's Office will continue to work tirelessly to bring those responsible to justice and disrupt the flow of illicit funds through cryptocurrency mixing services.
Defendant:
Keonne Rodriguez
Criminal Charges:
Conspiracy to operate a money transmitting business
City and State:
New York, NY
Date:
November 6, 2025 (sentencing)
Sentence:
5 years in prison
Dollar Amounts:
$237 million in illegal transactions
$2 billion (value of Bitcoin passing through Whirlpool and Ricochet)
$6 million (estimated fees collected by Samourai)
Key Facts
- State: New York
- Category: Cybercrime|Fraud & Financial Crimes|White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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