Roman Storm, co-founder of the cryptocurrency mixing service Tornado Cash, is set to stand trial on July 14, facing a streamlined set of charges following a recent decision by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). While prosecutors have dropped one count related to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, they continue to pursue other serious allegations.
The DOJ’s decision to drop the specific charge aligns with an April 7 memorandum from Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, which indicated a shift away from prosecuting crypto mixers for the actions of their end users or unintentional regulatory violations. Acting U.S. Attorney for Manhattan, Jay Clayton, confirmed that the remaining charges against Storm are consistent with this updated policy.
Storm still faces two significant charges: conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions. Each of these charges carries a potential maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The prosecution alleges that Tornado Cash facilitated the laundering of over $1 billion in cryptocurrency, including funds associated with the North Korean state-sponsored hacking group, Lazarus Group.
Storm has pleaded not guilty to all charges. His co-founder, Roman Semenov, remains at large and is believed to be residing in Russia.
The DOJ’s revised stance on crypto enforcement has also been cited by other individuals in the cryptocurrency sector seeking to have their charges dismissed, indicating a broader impact of the policy change on ongoing legal proceedings.
