Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin has stepped up to support the legal defense of Tornado Cash developers Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev. In a December 31 update shared by the Juicebox project Free Pertsev and Storm, Buterin donated 50 ETH, valued at approximately $170,000, to aid the embattled developers. This generous contribution constitutes about 25% of the $650,000 raised through JusticeDAO to back their legal battle.
Buterin Supports to Strengthen Legal Aid
The case stems from allegations that the Tornado Cash mixing service facilitated illicit activities. Dutch authorities arrested Pertsev in 2022, leading to a conviction for money laundering and a prison sentence of over five years. Pertsev plans to appeal the verdict. Similarly, U.S. prosecutors have charged Storm and Roman Semenov with money laundering, sanctions violations, and fraud tied to their roles in the project.
Storm, who is currently out on bail, awaits his trial scheduled for April 14, while Semenov remains at large. The charges largely stem from the U.S. Treasury Department’s 2022 decision to add Tornado Cash to its Specially Designated Nationals list, citing its alleged use by hackers, including North Korean groups, to launder over $7 billion in cryptocurrency since 2019.
Industry Criticism and Legal Challenges
The sanctions and criminal charges have sparked widespread backlash from the crypto community, with many arguing they unfairly target developers of neutral technology. Buterin’s recent donation follows a previous contribution of 100 ETH (approximately $240,000) to the same cause in October, highlighting his continued commitment to defending the developers.
Efforts to crowdfund support have faced challenges, such as GoFundMe’s shutdown of a similar campaign in February. Despite these obstacles, the crypto community has rallied behind the developers, emphasizing the importance of protecting innovation and ensuring due process.
The U.S. Treasury faces ongoing lawsuits from advocacy group Coin Center and Tornado Cash users backed by Coinbase, arguing that sanctioning immutable smart contracts overreaches regulatory authority. While a November appellate court ruling found the Treasury had overstepped, it did not influence the criminal proceedings against Storm.
The post Vitalik Buterin Donates 50 ETH to Tornado Cash Legal Defense Fund appeared first on TheCoinrise.com.
