DOJ Disputes Roman Storm’s Characterization of Tornado Cash Operations in New Filing

The
U.S.
Department
of
Justice
rebuffed
Tornado
Cash
developer
Roman
Storm’s
motion
to
dismiss
criminal
charges
on
Friday,
saying
the
defense
filing
presented
disputed
facts
that
a
jury
should
weigh
in
on,
rather
than
arguments
that
fit
an
early-stage
motion.

The
DOJ
charged
Storm,
alongside
fellow
developer
Roman
Semenov,
with
conspiring
to
commit
money
laundering,
conspiring
to
operate
an
unlicensed
money
transmitter
and
conspiring
to
violate
sanctions
law
by
creating
and
operating
Tornado
Cash,
a
crypto
mixing
service
designed
to
anonymize
transactions.
North
Korea’s
Lazarus
Group
and
other
criminal
entities
have
laundered
funds
through
Tornado
Cash,
U.S.
authorities
have
alleged.

Storm’s
attorneys

moved
to
dismiss
the
indictment
at
the
end
of
March,
arguing
that
Tornado
Cash
is
not
a
custodial
mixing
service
–
and
doesn’t
fit
the
definition
of
a
“financial
institution”
–
and
that
Storm
was
not
able
to
control
the
service
or
block
Lazarus
and
similar
groups
from
using
it.

Merely
developing
code
for
the
project
isn’t
the
same
as
operating
a
money
laundering
entity,
the
defense
argued.

In

Friday’s
filing,
the
DOJ
disputed
how
the
defense
characterized
Tornado
Cash,
saying
it
was
announced
in
2019
as
a
mixer
and
the
overall
service
includes
a
website,
user
interface,
a
combination
of
smart
contracts
and
a
“network
of
‘relayers.'”

“The
defendant
cannot
obtain
dismissal
of
the
Indictment
by
simply
making
factual
assertions
about
his
own
contested
view
as
to
how
the
Tornado
Cash
service
operated
and
based
on
his
own
self-serving
version
of
his
intent
or
lack
thereof
when
taking
certain
acts,”
Friday’s
filing
said.

The
DOJ
also
disputed
Storm’s
assertions
about
how
the
Tornado
Cash
interface
worked
and
how
much
control
individual
users
might
have
over
the
deposit
and
withdrawal
process,
providing
screenshots.
The
filing
also
argues
that
Storm
and
his
co-founders
maintained
control
over
the
mixer,
at
least
during
the
time
period
the
DOJ
is
referring
to
in
its
charging
document
(2019
to
August
2022).

The
filing
makes
repeated
references
to
evidence
the
DOJ
expects
to
introduce
during
trial,
addressing
how
Storm
and
other
Tornado
Cash
founders
built
and
developed
the
system,
how
people
used
Tornado
Cash
and
other
details.

Storm
is
set
to
go
on
trial
this
September,
while
Semenov
remains
at
large.

Read
more:



Tornado
Cash
Dev
Roman
Storm
Moves
to
Dismiss
Indictment
Over
Crypto-Laundering
Allegations