The co-founders of Samourai Wallet and U.S. prosecutors have requested additional time from a federal judge to consider dismissing charges against the company’s executives. In a letter dated April 28, attorneys for Samourai Wallet requested a joint 16-day extension of the pre-trial motions schedule, which was submitted to Judge Richard Berman.
If approved, the deadline for filing motions will be extended to May 29, with responses due on June 26 and final replies by July 10. The trial date, currently set for early November, will remain unchanged.
Background: Charges Against Samourai Wallet Executives
In April 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted Samourai Wallet CEO Keonne Rodriguez and CTO William Hill. Authorities charged them with operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and allegedly laundering more than $100 million through their platform.
Law enforcement arrested Rodriguez in the United States, while Portuguese authorities detained Hill, who is currently awaiting extradition to the United States.
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Defense and DOJ Discuss Potential Case Dismissal
On April 24, defence attorneys met with prosecutors to discuss the possibility of dropping the charges. The defence team argued that preparing pretrial motions would result in “significant expense” while the DOJ continues deliberating whether to proceed with the case. Prosecutors reportedly agreed to the requested delay “without expressing any views on the merits,” according to the court filing.
DOJ’s New Crypto Enforcement Strategy
The request for delay follows a significant shift in the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) cryptocurrency enforcement policy. In early April, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche disbanded the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team. This task force, created during the Biden administration, had aggressively pursued crypto-related crimes.
Blanche sharply criticised the previous approach, calling it a “reckless strategy of regulation by prosecution.” In his memo, he emphasised that the DOJ “is not a digital assets regulator”. He should instead focus enforcement on cases involving direct criminal harm, such as fraud against investors or the use of crypto to facilitate serious offences.
Defense Pushes for Dismissal Based on DOJ’s Policy Reversal
Following the policy announcement, Samourai Wallet’s defence attorneys sent a letter to Acting Manhattan U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton on April 10. They formally requested that the case be dismissed, arguing that the DOJ’s updated stance no longer supports prosecuting developers for creating privacy-focused tools.
The DOJ’s new directive encourages prosecutors to avoid targeting digital privacy innovations that do not directly contribute to crime. This evolving policy has already begun to influence other crypto cases.
Other Cases Affected by DOJ’s Shift
Samourai Wallet is not alone in invoking the DOJ’s revised approach. On April 9, SafeMoon CEO Braden Karony cited Blanche’s memo in a separate legal motion, asking a New York judge to dismiss his fraud and securities charges. Karony’s defence argued that the DOJ’s new guidelines no longer justify the prosecution.
What’s Next for Samourai Wallet’s Legal Battle?
If the court approves the extension, both the DOJ and Samourai Wallet’s defence team will have additional time to negotiate a potential dismissal. A final decision could reshape how future cases involving crypto privacy projects are handled in the U.S. legal system. Until then, the trial remains scheduled for early November, pending further developments.
