DOJ Sells 57 Bitcoin Despite Trump’s Executive Order Requiring Strategic Reserve
The U.S. Department of Justice seems to have violated President Donald Trump’s govt order by liquidating 57 Bitcoin forfeited by Samourai Wallet builders via Coinbase Prime on November 3, 2025.
Executive Order 14233, signed March 6, 2025, explicitly mandates that Bitcoin acquired by way of legal or civil asset forfeiture proceedings “shall not be offered” and have to be transferred to the United States Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.
According to an Asset Liquidation Agreement obtained solely by Bitcoin Magazine, prosecutors directed the U.S. Marshals Service to promote $6.3 million price of Bitcoin that Samourai builders Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill paid as a part of their responsible plea.
The Bitcoin was despatched on to Coinbase Prime tackle 3Lz5ULL7nG7vv6nwc8kNnbjDmSnawKS3n8, which at the moment exhibits a zero stability, indicating the property could have already been liquidated.
Defying Federal Guidance on Multiple Fronts
This marks the second occasion wherein the Southern District of New York has acted towards federal directives within the Samourai case.
On April 7, 2025, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche issued a memo titled “Ending Regulation By Prosecution,” stating “the Department [of Justice] will not goal digital foreign money exchanges, mixing and tumbling companies, and offline wallets for the acts of their finish customers.“
Despite this clear steerage, SDNY prosecutors proceeded with circumstances towards Rodriguez, Hill, and Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm.
The prosecution additionally moved ahead after studying, via a Brady request, that two high-ranking FinCEN officers “strongly prompt” that Samourai Wallet wasn’t working as a cash transmitter due to its non-custodial nature.
The SDNY has earned its colloquial nickname “Sovereign District of New York” for working independently throughout the federal system, boasting conviction charges exceeding 90% and a repute for harsh sentencing.
Amongst many others, Senator Cynthia Lummis has notably criticized this transfer, saying the United States “can’t afford to squander these strategic property whereas different nations are accumulating bitcoin.”
“I’m deeply involved about this report,” she added.
Legal Framework and Presidential Intent
Trump’s govt order established two distinct entities:
- The Strategic Bitcoin Reserve for forfeited Bitcoin.
- The United States Digital Asset Stockpile for different cryptocurrencies.
The order explicitly states that “Government BTC deposited into the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve shall not be offered and shall be maintained as reserve property of the United States utilized to fulfill governmental goals in accordance with relevant legislation.“
According to authorized evaluation, the forfeited Bitcoin falls underneath 18 U.S. Code § 982(a)(1), which governs property concerned in unlicensed cash transmitting offenses.
Neither this statute nor the included § 853 requires liquidation of forfeited property.
The govt order solely permits disposal of digital property in particular eventualities, comparable to returning funds to crime victims, legislation enforcement operations, sharing with state companions, or satisfying particular statutory necessities, none of which apply to the Rodriguez and Hill circumstances.
Back in April 2025, White House crypto adviser Bo Hines emphasized that any Bitcoin accumulation technique have to be “funds impartial,” and the administration wasexploring inventive approaches, together with tariff income and revaluing gold reserves.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent additionally clarified in August that the nation is “not going to be shopping for that, however we’re going to use confiscated property and proceed to construct that up.“
Questions About Ending the War on Crypto
Rodriguez received a five-year sentence on November 6, whereas Hill was sentenced to 4 years on November 19 for working Samourai Wallet, which prosecutors claimed processed over $237 million in legal proceeds.
Both builders forfeited the $6.3 million in charges earned from their platform’s operations.
On December 16, President Trump indicated he would take into account pardoning Rodriguez after being requested concerning the case throughout an Oval Office occasion.
“I’ve heard about it, I’ll take a look at it,” Trump told reporters, directing Attorney General Pam Bondi to look at the matter.
Rodriguez responded on social media, stating, “this President is aware of all about lawfare. He is aware of all a couple of weaponized Biden DOJ searching down their political rivals.“
Trump has beforehand pardoned Ross Ulbricht and Changpeng Zhao in associated crypto circumstances, and has raised optimism of an analogous pardon for Rodriguez.
The liquidation contradicts the administration’s said aim of treating Bitcoin as a strategic asset on par with gold reserves.
As a consequence, Patrick Witt, Executive Director of the White House President’s Council of Advisors for Digital Assets, said on X that the council is wanting into the matter.
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