Samourai Wallet Co-Founder Seeks Donations to Cover $2M

Keonne Rodriguez, a co-founder of the crypto-mixing protocol Samourai Wallet, has asked the crypto community for donations to cover about $2 million in legal fees and a $250,000 court fine after his Nov. 19 sentencing to five years in prison on money-laundering-related charges.

Co-founder William Lonergan Hill was sentenced to four years in the same case. Prosecutors say the pair developed and operated software that was used to launder cryptocurrency.

Federal prosecutors charged Rodriguez and Hill in April 2024 with conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. The two initially pleaded not guilty; in July 2025 they pleaded guilty to a single count of operating an illegal money transmitter. Rodriguez has said he accepted the plea after calculating that a trial would likely produce a longer sentence and far higher legal costs.

Rodriguez posted on X that he has been “financially wiped out” by legal bills and that he and his family are “entirely out of options.” The post requests donations specifically to pay off legal bills and other debts incurred while defending himself.

In a December interview with a journalist, Rodriguez described the cost of his defense as enormous. Industry estimates put criminal defense attorney rates between $200 and $500 per hour, with retainer fees often exceeding $10,000 and higher charges for complex cases or teams of lawyers. Rodriguez says those expenses have left him roughly $2 million in debt, not counting the $250,000 fine imposed at sentencing.

Privacy advocates and supporters of the defendants have argued that software developers should not be held criminally responsible for how third parties use open-source tools. The case has been noted alongside other prosecutions of crypto-mixing services, including legal action involving Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm.

There was public interest in a possible presidential pardon after a review was announced in December and an online petition drew nearly 16,000 signatures. Rodriguez wrote that hopes for a pardon faded after a Bitcoin conference and that he now expects to serve his full sentence: “There was some hope during the Bitcoin 2026 conference, but that has now come and gone, and one must come to terms with the fact that I am simply a federal prisoner without money, power, or influence, and I will serve my full sentence.” He added that prison prevents him from addressing the financial debts on his own.

Rodriguez framed the fundraising appeal as a last resort after years of litigation and mounting fees. His post asks for contributions to cover the outstanding legal bills and related debts incurred defending the case.