Executive Summary
- The US Marshals Service denied selling 57.55 BTC seized from Samourai Wallet founders.
- Blockchain data showed the assets moving to a Coinbase Prime wallet that later displayed a zero balance.
- President Trump’s Executive Order 14233 mandates forfeited Bitcoin be held in a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
- Samourai Wallet founders pleaded guilty in August 2025 to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business.
The United States Marshals Service (USMS) has formally denied allegations that it sold 57.55 Bitcoin seized from the founders of Samourai Wallet, contradicting blockchain analysis reports which suggested the assets were liquidated via Coinbase Prime. The denial comes amidst heightened scrutiny regarding federal compliance with executive mandates on cryptocurrency retention.
The assets in question were forfeited by Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, co-founders of the cryptocurrency mixing service Samourai Wallet. In August 2025, Rodriguez and Hill pleaded guilty in the Southern District of New York to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. According to court filings, the founders agreed to forfeit approximately $6.37 million in Bitcoin as part of their plea agreements.
Conflicting reports regarding the status of these funds emerged after Bitcoin Magazine cited an asset liquidation agreement indicating the Bitcoin was transferred on November 3, 2025, to a wallet associated with Coinbase Prime. Data from blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence supported this claim, noting that the destination wallet subsequently reflected a zero balance. This movement fueled speculation that the government had liquidated the assets.
In a statement provided to DL News, the USMS explicitly disputed these reports. An agency spokesperson stated that the USMS "has not sold the Bitcoin mentioned," emphasizing that any liquidation of assets requires a rigorous, multi-level approval process and must adhere to current legal requirements.
The disposition of these assets is legally bound by President Trump’s Executive Order 14233, signed in March 2025. The order established the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and mandates that any Bitcoin acquired by the U.S. government through forfeiture "shall not be sold" and must be maintained as a reserve asset of the United States.
Legislative & Operational Compliance
The discrepancy between on-chain movements—specifically the transfer to custodial exchanges—and the USMS’s official denial highlights the operational complexities of implementing the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. While the transfer of assets to a custodian like Coinbase Prime does not inherently constitute a market sale, the optical zero-balance status reported by analysts creates friction with the transparency required by President Trump’s Executive Order. This incident underscores the administrative challenges federal agencies face in aligning legacy forfeiture procedures with new executive mandates designed to stockpile digital assets rather than liquidate them.
