Arrest of Samourai Wallet founders: billions of dollars in money laundering

Arrest of Samourai Wallet founders: billions of dollars in money laundering

The crypto world was rocked by a shocking scandal when authorities revealed that massive money laundering was being carried out through the Samourai Wallet. The wallet's AES-256 encryption was considered extremely secure and was therefore appreciated by many users who placed great value on privacy. Nevertheless, according to US law enforcement, over $2 billion was laundered through the platform, with much of the money coming from the dark web and linked to illegal activities.

Samourai Wallet founders Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill have been arrested and charged. They are accused of making unauthorized money transfers and being actively involved in money laundering. The US authorities also state that over $100 million in criminal proceeds were generated. Rodriguez has already been arrested in the US, while Hill is currently in Portugal working on an extradition request.

The domain and web server of the Samourai Wallet were confiscated, resulting in the platform being inaccessible. Crypto Mixer has also been removed from the Google Play Store, where it was previously downloaded over 100,000 times. The crypto mixer was tasked with obfuscating users' data to prevent transactions from being traced, which particularly appeals to users who value privacy.

The funds laundered through the Samourai Wallet came from illegal dark web markets such as Silk Road and Hydra Market, according to Senior U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. Much of this money is said to come from fraudulent activities such as telecommunications fraud and computer fraud. Prosecutors are convinced that the Samourai Wallet served as a haven for large-scale money laundering, with CEO Rodriguez even allegedly recruiting Russian oligarchs to evade sanctions.