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Roman Storm, the co-founder of privacy-focused crypto tool Tornado Cash, has been convicted by a Manhattan federal court jury for operating an unlicensed money transferring business.
The verdict was reached after a three-week trial and four days of deliberation. The jurors were unable to come to an agreement on two more serious charges: money laundering and sanctions evasion.
According to the U.S. Treasury Department, Tornado Cash is a mixer that blends cryptocurrency transactions, making them harder to trace. Authorities claim this anonymity feature allows criminals to conceal stolen funds. Storm has consistently maintained his innocence, stating that his intention was to protect user privacy, rather than assist in illegal activities.
Storm’s lawyers plan to challenge the conviction and fight for full vindication. The attorneys have expressed concerns about the implications of the case on the crypto community, particularly with regards to regulating new technologies within traditional legal frameworks.
The remaining charge carries a possible five-year prison sentence. Storm’s legal team is expected to present further arguments in an effort to clear his name entirely.
Sources:
Source: cryptotale.org
