Roman Storm, Co-Founder of Crypto Mixer Tornado Cash, Heads to Trial Following U.S. DOJ Lawsuit.

Roman Storm, co-founder of cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, will face trial after a ruling in the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) lawsuit.

At a hearing on the 26th, U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla, from the Southern District of New York (SDNY), denied Storm’s appeal to dismiss the charges against him.

Judge Failla ruled that Storm's claims regarding free speech and the brief period of illegal activity, as well as his defense of Tornado Cash’s business, were insufficient to counter the DOJ’s charges. She determined that the government had made credible allegations against the developers. Failla stated:

"At this stage of the trial, the court cannot accept the claim that Storm is being prosecuted solely for writing code. If the jury ultimately accepts this argument, a not guilty verdict will follow. However, there is no legal basis for me to make such a determination."

Storm, a Russian national developer, had argued that being prosecuted for coding was akin to being prosecuted for free speech, and that coding should be protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.

However, Judge Failla countered, stating, "The functional capability of code is not speech within the meaning of the First Amendment." She further added, "The government has a significant interest in preventing money laundering, operating unregistered money transmission services, and sanction evasion, to promote a secure financial system."

"The government's interest is unrelated to suppressing freedom of expression, and applying these laws to eradicate the conduct does not impose undue burdens on free speech," Failla continued. She noted that Tornado Cash had no "meaningful difference" from other money transmission businesses and was not an "altruistic venture."

Storm was indicted in August 2023, alongside fellow co-founder Roman Semenov, on charges of conspiracy to launder money, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmission business, and conspiracy to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) in relation to their activities with the Tornado Cash mixer.

Both co-founders pleaded not guilty to all charges. Their defense team argued in March that the developers had only written the code for Tornado Cash and should not be held accountable for any illegal activities that occurred afterward.

Judge Failla commented, "The law is clear: to convict on money laundering charges, the defendant does not need to know about or be involved in specific illegal activity. The government does not need to claim that Storm knew the specific nature of the underlying criminal activity, let alone that he was a participant."

Tornado Cash Added to the U.S. Blacklist

After Tornado Cash was blacklisted by the U.S. government, developer Alexey Pertsev was imprisoned.

The U.S. government alleged that the platform was used by North Korean hacker group Lazarus to facilitate money laundering.

The founders of Tornado Cash were not charged with creating software but with running a centralized, for-profit business that violated the law.

In May, Vitalik Buterin donated 30 ETH to help cover the legal costs of Tornado Cash and Roman Storm. This gesture likely reflects Buterin's support for a talented programmer from his native Russia.

Reference: Report
Image: Shutterstock

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