NEW YORK Samourai Wallet co-founder Keonn Rodriguez appeared in court in Manhattan on Monday on two criminal charges related to the creation and promotion of a bitcoin wallet app and a privacy-focused mixing service. He pleaded not guilty in court.
Rodriguez, 35, and Samurai Wallet co-founder William Lonergan Hill, 65, were arrested last week and charged with one count each of conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to operate an unauthorized money transfer business, with Rodriguez in Pennsylvania and Hill in Portugal. The maximum sentences are 20 years and five years in prison, respectively.
Prosecutors allege that between 2015 and the seizure of Samurai Wallet's servers last week, the app "facilitated the laundering of more than $100 million from illegal dark web sites.
The arrest and shutdown of Samurai Wallet came as the U. S. government prepares for a lawsuit against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm. The case has angered many in the crypto industry, who see it as a sign that the government is trying to criminalize financial privacy.
In a press release from the U. S. Department of Justice announcing the arrests last week, prosecutors said Rodriguez and Hill "encouraged and openly solicited users to launder criminal proceeds" and considered a "limited market" as their goal.
Rodriguez was arrested at his home in #Harmony , Pennsylvania, around 6 a. m. on April 24. A Pennsylvania judge released Rodriguez on $25,000 bail and ordered him to appear before a judge in the Southern District of New York (SDNY) on Monday morning.
On Monday, Judge Barbara Moses ordered Rodriguez released on $1 million bail, accepting the terms of a bail package negotiated by federal prosecutors and Rodriguez's attorneys, Sean Buckley and Michael Kilty of the international law firm Coble Kim.
Rodriguez's bail is secured by real estate in Pennsylvania and the signatures of his wife and another family member. In addition to traveling to and from court, Rodriguez will remain in his home and be monitored by location tracking technology.
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