DOJ Rebuts Tornado Cash Developer Roman Storm’s Defense, Asserting Money Transmitting Operations
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has denied Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm’s request to dismiss criminal charges, arguing that the defense’s filing presented disputed facts that should be decided by a jury instead of being resolved in an early-stage motion.
Storm, along with fellow developer Roman Semenov, was charged by the DOJ with conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitter, and conspiracy to violate sanctions laws through the creation and operation of Tornado Cash.
US authorities claim that Tornado Cash has been utilized by criminal organizations, including North Korea’s Lazarus Group, for money laundering purposes.
DOJ Affirms Tornado Cash Was Launched as a Mixer
In their motion to dismiss the indictment, Storm’s lawyers argued that Tornado Cash is not a custodial mixing service and does not meet the definition of a “financial institution.”
They also contended that Storm had no control over the service and could not prevent entities like the Lazarus Group from using it.
The defense’s position was that merely developing the code for the project does not equate to operating a money laundering entity.
However, in the DOJ’s recent filing, they disputed the defense’s portrayal of Tornado Cash.
They stated that the service was introduced in 2019 as a mixer and consisted of a website, user interface, a combination of smart contracts, and a network of “relayers.”
The DOJ argued that Storm cannot dismiss the indictment based on his own contested view of how the Tornado Cash service operated or his self-serving version of his intent.
The filing also refuted Storm’s claims about the functionality of the Tornado Cash interface and the control individual users had over the deposit and withdrawal process.
The DOJ presented screenshots and argued that Storm and his co-founders maintained control over the mixer, at least during the time period covered by the charging document (2019 to August 2022).
The DOJ’s filing repeatedly referred to evidence that they plan to present during the trial, including details about how Storm and other Tornado Cash founders built and developed the system and how people used the service.
Storm is scheduled to go to trial in September, while Semenov remains at large.
Storm Seeks Support Against Money Laundering Charges
Earlier this year, Storm reached out to right-to-privacy advocates for support ahead of his upcoming criminal trial.
At the time, Storm stated that his legal team was preparing a strong defense for his September 2024 trial.
“This legal battle will impact you, whether you’re a passionate developer like me involved with Web3 or just care about software and privacy. This case will set a significant precedent for years to come,” he said.
In response, the Arbitrum DAO submitted a proposal requesting the allocation of approximately $1.3 million worth of Arbitrum (ARB) tokens from the community wallet to assist Storm.
However, the submitter has since withdrawn the proposal without providing any reasons.
A crowdfunding campaign on GoFundMe, aimed at collecting legal fees for Storm and Pertsev, was canceled on February 16 due to a violation of the platform’s terms of service that could expose GoFundMe, its employees, or users to potential harm or liability.
As previously reported, the US Treasury has included Tornado Cash on its Specially Designated Nationals list, effectively prohibiting Americans from using this mixer.
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