Roman Storm, co-founder of crypto mixer Tornado Cash, is on standby for trial after his request to plead guilty to charges related to his role on the platform was rejected by the court.
The Court Is Insistent on the Accusations
As you may remember, Storm was arrested in Auburn, Washington State, and was later released on $2 million bail. Federal authorities have filed serious charges against him, including money laundering, evasion of US sanctions and operating an unregistered money transmission company.
The defense team is seeking to have the charges dropped, arguing that Storm had no direct role in how the platform was used. The legal team argued that Tornado Cash was self-executing software and that Storm $2,668 He argues that he lost control over his blockchain after it was deployed in 2019. However, the judge ruled that Storm’s charges would continue. “Control is not a necessary requirement to prove guilt,” U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla said.
The Cryptocurrency World Reacted to the Decision
The cryptocurrency world reacted greatly to the latest decision. “True liability lies with individuals who misuse such tools for illegal purposes,” said Amanda Tuminelli, head of legal at the DeFi Education Fund, arguing that developers should not be held responsible for the illegal activities of third parties who misuse open source software.
Famous crypto lawyer Jake Chervinsky also criticized the decision and commented, “This decision is an attack on the freedom of software developers.”
The trial date of the case, December 2, is seen as a critical moment for the legal treatment of open source developers in the cryptocurrency industry.
Tornado Cash was designed to increase privacy in cryptocurrency transactions and has become controversial due to allegations that it was used by hackers affiliated with North Korea’s Lazarus Group. It was sanctioned by the US Treasury Department in October 2022, and as a result of the initiatives, there was a 68 percent drop in total logins to the platform in January 2023.
The Future of Litigation
The U.S. Department of Justice argues that Tornado Cash received an investment of approximately $1 million from a venture capital firm and used those funds with the expectation of sharing. Storm’s ongoing trial is scheduled to begin in New York in December.
Evidence that the platform’s co-founders have cashed out millions of dollars from TORN assets suggests that Tornado Cash is not entirely motivated by altruism.
The case seems likely to spark significant debate about the legal liability of open source software.
Disclaimer: The information contained in this article does not constitute investment advice. Investors should be aware that crypto currencies carry high volatility and therefore risk, and should carry out their transactions in line with their own research.
