Dutch authorities have charged Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev, alleging his involvement in laundering $1.2 billion in illicit funds through the cryptocurrency mixer. This was reported by local media.
The indictment mentions 36 transactions deemed illegal by the prosecution.
One such transaction, amounting to 175 ETH, is reportedly linked to the March 2022 hack of the Ronin sidechain used in the blockchain game Axie Infinity, which resulted in a $625 million loss for the protocol.
The charges also reference decentralized protocols Harmony and Nomad, which suffered from hacks.
Pertsev’s trial is scheduled for March 26 in the Netherlands.
In August 2022, OFAC added Tornado Cash to its sanctions list for its role in laundering over $7 billion in criminal proceeds.
That same month, Alexey Pertsev was arrested. In April 2023, his pre-trial detention was changed to house arrest.
Later, US authorities also charged the mixer’s co-founders Roman Storm and Roman Semenov. Storm was subsequently released on bail, while Semenov remained free but faced sanctions.
Since January 2024, Storm and Pertsev have been raising $1.5 million for legal defense. To this end, the JusticeDAO fund was established. The initiative has been supported by former NSA and CIA employee Edward Snowden, among other crypto community members.
In February, the crowdfunding platform GoFundMe halted fundraising for Tornado Cash, citing risks to its users.