Legal Expert Criticises US Justice Department’s Statements in Tornado Cash Case

The US Department of Justice’s stance in the case against Roman Storm, co-founder of the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, is based on evident disregard for privacy and new technologies, as well as a misapplication of the law, according to Amanda Tuminelli, head of the legal department at DeFi Education Fund.

The DOJ’s opposition to Roman Storm’s motions to dismiss and suppress evidence in the Tornado Cash case is filled with technical inaccuracies, obvious disdain for privacy and emerging technology, and misapplication of the law.

The TLDR of the opposition is: look at our really…

— Amanda Tuminelli (@amandatums) April 27, 2024

On her X page, she highlighted a number of “egregious statements” found in the department’s response to Storm’s motion to dismiss charges.

In one section, the US Department of Justice attributed statements to the Tornado Cash co-founder suggesting that “wrongful acts using computer software are absolutely protected,” and that cryptocurrency is “inherently beyond the reach of law enforcement.”

“This is not at all what Storm claimed in his motion. It is hard to imagine how misleading this is,” Tuminelli wrote.

The lawyer also pointed out the prosecution’s complete misunderstanding of the nature of blockchain and how immutable smart contract protocols operate. According to them, Storm and mixer co-founder Roman Semenov “could have done something” about the alleged illegal activity on Tornado Cash, “but chose not to.”

Furthermore, the prosecution ignored all arguments from the DeFi Education Fund, acting as amicus curiae, that the IEEPA “should not be used to punish a software developer who never directly interacted with a sanctioned entity.”

Observers noted that, according to the Justice Department’s definition, the term “money transmission” does not require the sender to have “control” over the transferred funds and extends to “transferring funds on behalf of the public by any means.”

The Tornado Cash case could set dangerous precedents for the freedom of the Internet. Any provider broadcasting financial transactions, from ISPs to do your online banking to Verizon or AT&T to send money via PayPal, could be at risk of being forced into KYC. https://t.co/G7PM0pwnUA

— L0la L33tz (@L0laL33tz) April 27, 2024

“This could create [dangerous] precedents for internet freedom,” believes user L0la L33tz.

The trial of Storm is scheduled for September. He was previously released on bail. In September, he pleaded not guilty.

In August 2022, the OFAC blacklisted Tornado Cash for involvement in laundering over $7 billion in criminal funds.

In the same month, the developer of the crypto mixer, Alexey Pertsev, was arrested. In April 2023, his pre-trial detention was changed to house arrest. Pertsev is accused of laundering $1.2 billion in illegal funds, and a 64-month prison sentence has been requested for him. The verdict is scheduled for May 14.

Roman Semenov, accused of money laundering and sanctions violations, remains free but has come under sanctions.