U.S. Judge Refuses to Dismiss Charges Against Tornado Cash Co-Founder
A U.S. federal judge has ruled that Roman Storm, co-founder of the crypto mixer Tornado Cash, will stand trial on money laundering charges, rejecting his motion to dismiss the case.
The trial is scheduled to begin on December 2 in New York and is expected to last approximately two weeks.
District Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the Southern District of New York denied Roman Storm's request to dismiss three charges brought against him by the U.S. Department of Justice during a telephonic conference on September 26, according to DeFi Education Fund's Chief Legal Officer Amanda Tuminelli.
These charges include one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of conspiracy to violate the International Economic Emergency Powers Act, each carrying a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison.
Storm also faces a charge of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, which could result in an additional five years of imprisonment.
The indictment, filed last August, alleges that Storm "knowingly facilitated" the laundering of over $1 billion in criminal proceeds through Tornado Cash. The software is designed to enhance privacy for crypto transactions by obscuring the origin and destination of funds.
Storm's defense argued that his role in developing Tornado Cash was protected under the First Amendment. However, Judge Failla stated that the âfunctional capabilityâ of code does not equate to speech protected by the Constitution, reported by Coindesk.
She emphasized that the government's efforts to combat money laundering and sanction evasion are unrelated to free speech concerns.