Trump signals openness to Samourai wallet pardon review after earlier crypto clemency moves

During a broader deregulatory push in digital assets, Donald Trump has now suggested he may review the Samourai wallet case involving its convicted co-founder.

Trump says he will review Samourai Wallet co-founder case

US President Donald Trump said he will examine the case of Keonne Rodriguez, the convicted Samourai Wallet developer, and consider a possible pardon. The comments came on Monday during a White House press conference focused on the Mexican border, underscoring how the matter has entered mainstream political discourse.

Samourai Wallet co-founders Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill were sentenced on Nov. 19 to five and four years in prison, respectively, in relation to their role in the crypto mixing protocol. Their prosecution has become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over the limits of financial privacy tools.

Both men initially pleaded not guilty. However, they later changed course in July and agreed to plead guilty to operating an illegal money transmitter, a shift that significantly reshaped the legal trajectory of the case.

Following the plea, Rodriguez and Hill still faced as much as 25 years in prison on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business. The conspiracy charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, while the unlicensed business charge carries up to five years.

Trump’s public comments on a potential pardon

When asked directly on Monday whether he would consider a pardon for Rodriguez, Trump said he had “heard about” the case and that he would “look at it.” The remarks suggest the issue has now reached senior political levels, even if the president has not yet been briefed in detail.

“Okay, let’s take a look at it. You know, you’ll have to tell me. I don’t know anything about it, but we’ll take a look,” Trump added, signaling openness rather than a firm commitment. Moreover, the comments indicate the administration could become more involved in controversial enforcement actions tied to privacy-oriented crypto tools.

The samourai wallet case has become a touchstone in the broader crypto developer pardons debate, where critics argue that builders of open-source software should not be punished for what end users do with those tools.

Privacy advocates rally around Rodriguez and Hill

Privacy advocates have long campaigned in support of Rodriguez and Hill, as well as Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm. They maintain that developers should not be held liable for criminal acts committed by users who interact with the software once it is released.

In an X post on Monday, Rodriguez, who is scheduled to begin serving his sentence this week, thanked supporters for their “continued noise,” saying that pressure is yielding results. That said, his legal situation remains unchanged for now.

“Thank you to everyone pushing Donald Trump to pardon Bill and me. Let’s get this over the line,” he wrote, directly linking the grassroots campaign to the possibility of presidential intervention.

In an interview with Bitcoin educator Natalie Brunell on Friday, Rodriguez said he believed there was a realistic chance of a pardon if his case were properly presented to Trump and senior administration officials. Moreover, he framed his situation as part of a wider struggle over how far authorities should go in policing digital privacy tools.

He also referenced the US Department of Justice (DOJ), which he claims was “weaponized” against Trump by the previous administration. Rodriguez argues that, if Trump reviews the facts of his prosecution, he may see parallels with what supporters describe as broader doj weaponized claims.

Trump’s record of pardons for high-profile crypto figures

Since beginning his second term in the White House in January, Trump has already issued high-profile pardons for Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and Silk Road creator Ross Ulbricht. These cases have set a precedent that fuels expectations around future clemency requests from the crypto sector.

CZ pleaded guilty in November 2023 to violating the Bank Secrecy Act by failing to implement adequate anti-money laundering (AML) and know-your-customer (KYC) controls at Binance while serving as CEO. However, as part of a sweeping settlement, US regulators also imposed record penalties on the exchange.

Under the plea deal, Binance agreed to pay a $4.3 billion fine, and CZ stepped down as CEO. Additionally, CZ served four months in prison before receiving a presidential pardon, which effectively wiped away the remaining consequences of his conviction.

After granting clemency, Trump argued that CZ had been the target of what he called the Biden administration’s “witch hunt.” The pardon was interpreted by many observers as a direct rebuke to prior regulatory and enforcement strategies.

Ulbricht, the founder of the now-defunct dark web marketplace Silk Road, also received a pardon from Trump on his life sentence. Moreover, this move galvanized segments of the crypto community that had long campaigned for his release, viewing the punishment as excessive relative to comparable cases.

What comes next for the Samourai Wallet case?

For now, the future of the Samourai Wallet co-founders hinges on whether the White House decides to move beyond initial public comments and formally review their clemency petitions. That process, if initiated, could take months and would likely attract intense scrutiny from both privacy advocates and law enforcement.

Supporters of Keonne Rodriguez continue a visible pardon push online, arguing that criminal penalties for building privacy tools risk chilling innovation across the entire crypto ecosystem. However, critics counter that mixers and similar services have routinely been used to launder funds tied to hacks, ransomware, and sanctions evasion.

As Trump weighs another contentious decision involving the digital asset sector, the Samourai Wallet prosecution now sits at the intersection of technology policy, criminal law, and presidential power. The outcome could shape how future administrations treat developers behind privacy-focused financial software.

In summary, Trump’s statement that he will “take a look” at the case keeps the door open to clemency but stops short of a promise. Moreover, the final decision may become a high-profile test of how far political leaders are prepared to go in defending, or restraining, code developers in the crypto space.