Prosecutors May Dismiss Charges Against Samourai Wallet Following Updated DOJ Crypto Enforcement Guidelines: Legal Filing

New York prosecutors are reportedly contemplating the possibility of dismissing their case against the co-founders of Samourai Wallet, Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, as indicated in a court document released on Monday.

In a collaborative communication to District Judge Richard Berman of the Southern District of New York, both the prosecutors and defense attorneys for Rodriguez and Hill requested a delay of 16 days to allow the government to evaluate its stance following a defense motion seeking the case’s dismissal, referencing a recent memo from U.S. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche.

In his memo dated April 7, Blanche disclosed that the Department of Justice’s cryptocurrency task force, known as the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team, would be disbanded. He instructed that future cases against crypto exchanges or services should not be pursued based on the actions of their users or inadvertent regulatory breaches.

Blanche mandated the closure of any investigations that do not align with this revised policy, emphasizing that his office would collaborate with the DOJ’s criminal division to assess current cases for compliance with the new directive.

A few days after Blanche’s announcement, defense attorneys for Hill and Rodriguez formally requested the dismissal of the superseding indictment in light of the Blanche Memo, leading to a meeting between both sides on April 24 to address this matter.

In April of the previous year, Rodriguez and Hill were charged with conspiracy related to money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting operation, facing potential sentences of 20 years and five years, respectively. Prosecutors alleged that Samourai Wallet enabled approximately $2 billion in illicit transactions from 2015 to 2024, with the defendants reportedly earning around $4.5 million in fees during that period.