The jury did not make a unanimous decision in the case of Roman Storm.
Roman Storm, however, innocent?
Roman Storm, the creator of Tornado Cash, was recognized by the jury bench, but only to conduct unlimited activities in the implementation of monetary messages. It is worth recalling, however, that the programmer was also accused of two other allegations: establishing a conspiracy aimed at washing money and a conspiracy regarding violation of the Act on international extraordinary economic rights (IEEPA), i.e. in practice breaking economic sanctions imposed on hostile US countries.
Prosecutors immediately after announcing the judgment of the bench offered the temporary arrest of Storm, claiming that there is a serious risk of his escape. They referred to the fact that he had access to millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies. The team of Obrońców Storma, led by lawyer Brian Klein, effectively won the fact that his client would remain at large. At least until the sentence was issued.
The date of announcement of the sentence has not yet been set.
A case that can shake the DEFI market
36-year-old Storm was arrested in 2023 and accused of helping cybercriminals in money laundering. The latter were to transfer through Tornado Cash funds worth over a billion dollars. The mixer users included, among others Members of the Lazarus group, which is associated with the North Korean government.
And here the problem arose: the group hackers help the Kim regime to gain funds for work on nuclear weapons, and at the same time bypass American sanctions. Is it the fault of Storm? In the end speeches given this week, prosecutors argued that he was fully aware that the mixer helped criminals and derived personal benefits from the practice – he allegedly earned millions of USD.
The problem is that Tornado Cash is a part of the DEFI market – a decentralized solution. If Storm was convicted for creating such a platform, it would be bad for the industry – it meant that the software creator is responsible for how users use his work. It’s like accusing the knife manufacturer for being killed with his product.
