Storm will stand trial on federal charges, including money laundering and sanctions evasion.
Storm’s trial is set to begin in a Manhattan federal courtroom in less than two months. The most recent court filings show that prosecutors have agreed to drop one portion of the charge related to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, acknowledging inconsistencies with federal guidelines.
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) clarified in 2019 that “non-custodial entities” such as Tornado Cash are not classified as money transmitters. The DOJ’s partial rollback highlights a tension between law enforcement and developers of decentralized software.
Amanda Tuminelli, executive director of the DeFi Education Fund, told Decrypt that technologists building neutral privacy tools should not be held to “unreasonable criminal standards.”
The DOJ’s reaffirmation of charges against Storm follows the leak of an internal memo indicating the agency would now prioritize pursuing individuals using crypto tools for criminal purposes rather than prosecuting the platforms themselves.
The US Treasury sanctioned Tornado Cash in 2022, claiming that the protocol had facilitated more than $7 billion in illicit transactions.
The DOJ, Storm, and his attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment as of press time.
