Bitcoin Mixing Service Shut Down: CEO Gets 5 Years
A Big Sentence for a Big Crime
The boss of Samourai Wallet, Keonne Rodriguez, has been sentenced to five years in prison. His crime? Running a service that mixed up Bitcoin to hide its origins.
Prosecutors claim this service laundered over $237 million.
The Arrest and Charges
Rodriguez and his partner, William Lonergan Hill, were arrested last year. They were charged with:
- Money laundering
- Running an unlicensed money business
After a lengthy legal battle, they both pleaded guilty to lesser charges, avoiding the more serious money laundering charge, which could have landed them in prison for 20 years.
How Samourai Wallet Operated
Samourai Wallet had two key services:
- Whirlpool – Mixed Bitcoin from different users, making tracking nearly impossible.
- Ricochet – Added extra steps to further obscure the trail.
Over time, more than 80,000 Bitcoins—worth over $2 billion—passed through these services.
Encouraging Illegal Use
Rodriguez and Hill didn’t just run the service—they actively promoted it for illegal activities.
- Rodriguez called it "money laundering for Bitcoin" in private messages.
- Hill advertised it on dark web forums as a way to make illegal money untraceable.
Government Crackdown
This case is part of a wider effort to shut down crypto mixing services. The government is determined to stop these operations, which help criminals hide their tracks.
The Sentencing
Rodriguez asked for a one-year sentence, but the judge gave him the maximum: five years.
Hill’s sentencing is coming up soon, and the government is pushing for the same five-year term.