Crypto Court Clash: Tornado Cash Developer’s Fate Hangs in Balance

Tornado Cash Developer Faces July Trial Without DOJ Record Review

Roman Storm, the developer behind Tornado Cash, is set for a U.S. trial in July. A federal judge has denied a request for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to review its records for perhaps helpful evidence.

Judge Katherine Polk Failla made this decision on Friday. She ruled that the DOJ doesn’t need to re-examine its files for facts that could aid storm’s defense. This ruling comes as Storm and his legal team get ready for the upcoming trial.

Storm is accused of operating the Ethereum mixer and laundering over $1 billion. The DOJ confirmed it will proceed with the prosecution of Roman Storm, co-founder of the Ethereum mixer Tornado Cash.

Storm is charged with operating the mixing service and laundering over $1 billion. The DOJ initially filed these charges in August 2023, along with Roman Semenov, another Tornado Cash founder. The trial is scheduled for July 2025.

However, the DOJ recently announced it will no longer target crypto mixing services. Instead,it will focus on “bad actors” who exploit these services for illegal activities like money laundering.

Storm’s legal team had hoped the DOJ would review its records for any information that could help his defense. But Judge Katherine Polk Failla denied this request, stating there was no additional material that could aid the defense.

This decision is significant as prosecutors are legally required to share all information that could help the defendant’s case. Without this review, Storm’s defense may face challenges during the trial.

Meanwhile, another Tornado Cash developer, Alexey Pertsev, was released by a Dutch court in February after being arrested in Amsterdam in august 2022.