US prosecutors request new trial for Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm

TheNewsCrypto2026-03-10 tarihinde yayınlandı2026-03-10 tarihinde güncellendi

Özet

U.S. prosecutors are seeking a retrial for Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm on charges of money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violations after a previous jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on those counts. Although Storm was convicted of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business, the unresolved charges allow for a new trial. Prosecutors proposed a retrial as early as October, while Storm’s defense suggested availability no sooner than 2026. The case is closely watched in the crypto industry, as it could set a precedent for the legal liability of developers working on decentralized financial software and open-source protocols.

U.S. prosecutors are seeking a retrial for Roman Storm, the co-founder of the cryptocurrency mixing service Tornado Cash. This comes after a federal jury issued a mixed verdict in the previous trial. The case has received considerable attention in the cryptocurrency industry because it has the potential to set the stage for the legal accountability of decentralized software developers. Prosecutors in Manhattan are seeking a retrial for Roman Storm on two counts after the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict in the previous trial.

The Letter For The Retrial

Jay Clayton wrote to Katherine Polk Failla on Monday and asked her to arrange for a retrial of Roman Storm on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate sanctions. The government suggested the period between Oct. 5 and Oct. 12 for the trial, indicating that it could take around three weeks for the process to end. The letter indicated that the government was ready to retry the case as early as between March and May. However, Storm’s defense attorneys indicated to the prosecutors that they could only participate in the process as late as 2026.

During the earlier trial, the jurors found Storm guilty of conspiring to run an unlicensed money transmitting business in association with the crypto mixer known as Tornado Cash. However, the jury did not arrive at a unanimous decision regarding the money laundering charge and sanctions conspiracy charge, which means that these charges are eligible for retrial. Storm continues to stand by his plea of not guilty and had previously moved to dismiss the money transmitting charge. His legal representatives had argued that the prosecution failed to prove that he intended to help illicit actors use his platform. Clayton’s letter also stated that Storm’s legal representatives argued it was premature to seek a retrial until the court resolves the motion to dismiss, scheduled for argument in early April.

Tornado Cash is now a closely watched legal case in the cryptocurrency and decentralized finance spaces. This is because the outcome is thought to have implications for the interpretation of the liability of developers in decentralized software systems. It has been observed that the prosecutors used federal money transmitter laws as the basis for the prosecution of the developer of the Tornado Cash protocol. The jury has since convicted Storm of running an unlicensed money transmitting business.

Meanwhile, the jurors were unable to make a decision on the money laundering conspiracy and sanctions violation charges against Tornado Cash. These unresolved charges give the prosecution the option of holding a retrial for the unresolved charges against Tornado Cash. Legal experts say that a retrial could help determine the extent of liability for developers of open-source financial technologies. Other analysts have cautioned that expansive interpretations of current financial laws could confuse the development of decentralized finance products. Pro-privacy groups have highlighted Tornado Cash’s role as an open-source privacy protocol on blockchain networks.

Highlighted Crypto News:

Trump Signals Iran War May End Very Soon, Floats U.S. Control of the Strait of Hormuz

TagsBlockchainTornado CashU.S

İlgili Sorular

QWhat specific charges is the US government seeking a retrial for against Roman Storm?

AThe US government is seeking a retrial for Roman Storm on the charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate sanctions.

QWhy did the jury's previous verdict lead to the possibility of a retrial?

AThe jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on the money laundering and sanctions conspiracy charges, making those specific charges eligible for a retrial.

QWhat was the one charge that the jury did convict Roman Storm on in the initial trial?

AThe jury convicted Roman Storm of conspiring to run an unlicensed money transmitting business.

QWhy is the Tornado Cash case considered so significant for the cryptocurrency industry?

AThe case is significant because its outcome could set a legal precedent for determining the liability of developers who create decentralized software and open-source financial technologies.

QWhat argument did Storm's defense team use to challenge the money laundering charge?

AStorm's defense attorneys argued that the prosecution failed to prove he had the intent to help illicit actors use the Tornado Cash platform.

İlgili Okumalar

Google and Amazon Simultaneously Invest Heavily in a Competitor: The Most Absurd Business Logic of the AI Era Is Becoming Reality

In a span of four days, Amazon announced an additional $25 billion investment, and Google pledged up to $40 billion—both direct competitors pouring over $65 billion into the same AI startup, Anthropic. Rather than a typical venture capital move, this signals the latest escalation in the cloud wars. The core of the deal is not equity but compute pre-orders: Anthropic must spend the majority of these funds on AWS and Google Cloud services and chips, effectively locking in massive future compute consumption. This reflects a shift in cloud market dynamics—enterprises now choose cloud providers based on which hosts the best AI models, not just price or stability. With OpenAI deeply tied to Microsoft, Anthropic’s Claude has become the only viable strategic asset for Google and Amazon to remain competitive. Anthropic’s annualized revenue has surged to $30 billion, and it is expanding into verticals like biotech, positioning itself as a cross-industry AI infrastructure layer. However, this funding comes with constraints: Anthropic’s independence is challenged as it balances two rival investors, its safety-first narrative faces pressure from regulatory scrutiny, and its path to IPO introduces new financial pressures. Globally, this accelerates a "tri-polar" closed-loop structure in AI infrastructure, with Microsoft-OpenAI, Google-Anthropic, and Amazon-Anthropic forming exclusive model-cloud alliances. In contrast, China’s landscape differs—investments like Alibaba and Tencent backing open-source model firm DeepSeek reflect a more decoupled approach, though closed-source models from major cloud providers still dominate. The $65 billion bet is ultimately about securing a seat at the table in an AI-defined future—where missing the model layer means losing the cloud war.

marsbit1 saat önce

Google and Amazon Simultaneously Invest Heavily in a Competitor: The Most Absurd Business Logic of the AI Era Is Becoming Reality

marsbit1 saat önce

Computing Power Constrained, Why Did DeepSeek-V4 Open Source?

DeepSeek-V4 has been released as a preview open-source model, featuring 1 million tokens of context length as a baseline capability—previously a premium feature locked behind enterprise paywalls by major overseas AI firms. The official announcement, however, openly acknowledges computational constraints, particularly limited service throughput for the high-end DeepSeek-V4-Pro version due to restricted high-end computing power. Rather than competing on pure scale, DeepSeek adopts a pragmatic approach that balances algorithmic innovation with hardware realities in China’s AI ecosystem. The V4-Pro model uses a highly sparse architecture with 1.6T total parameters but only activates 49B during inference. It performs strongly in agentic coding, knowledge-intensive tasks, and STEM reasoning, competing closely with top-tier closed models like Gemini Pro 3.1 and Claude Opus 4.6 in certain scenarios. A key strategic product is the Flash edition, with 284B total parameters but only 13B activated—making it cost-effective and accessible for mid- and low-tier hardware, including domestic AI chips from Huawei (Ascend), Cambricon, and Hygon. This design supports broader adoption across developers and SMEs while stimulating China's domestic semiconductor ecosystem. Despite facing talent outflow and intense competition in user traffic—with rivals like Doubao and Qianwen leading in monthly active users—DeepSeek has maintained technical momentum. The release also comes amid reports of a new funding round targeting a valuation exceeding $10 billion, potentially setting a new record in China’s LLM sector. Ultimately, DeepSeek-V4 represents a shift toward open yet realistic infrastructure development in the constrained compute landscape of Chinese AI, emphasizing engineering efficiency and domestic hardware compatibility over pure model scale.

marsbit2 saat önce

Computing Power Constrained, Why Did DeepSeek-V4 Open Source?

marsbit2 saat önce

Memecoin Millionaires Line Up For Trump’s Exclusive Luncheon

A crypto investor paid only $500 to attend an exclusive luncheon with former President Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, reflecting a significant decline in enthusiasm compared to previous events. The TRUMP memecoin has lost over 93% of its value since its peak, falling from around $45 to under $3. Despite the collapse, nearly 300 top holders are expected to attend the gathering, which critics argue is an attempt to buy access to the president. Notable attendees include key figures from the industry like Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino and Bitcoin advocate Anthony Pompliano. However, Tron founder Justin Sun, the largest holder of the token, is absent amid a lawsuit against a crypto platform co-founded by Trump’s sons. Ethics watchdogs have raised concerns about conflicts of interest and lack of financial transparency.

bitcoinist5 saat önce

Memecoin Millionaires Line Up For Trump’s Exclusive Luncheon

bitcoinist5 saat önce

Why Bitcoin Price Failed To Breach $80K: An On-Chain Deep Dive

Bitcoin's price recently surged to a three-month high above $79,000 but struggled to break the $80,000 resistance. According to on-chain analysis, a key reason is the "True Market Mean Price," a metric representing the average cost basis of active market participants, which acted as a strong resistance level. Additionally, a shift in market sentiment toward FOMO (fear of missing out) and euphoria signaled caution among traders. Analysts suggest that a confirmed breakout would require holding above this level for about three days. As of the latest data, BTC is trading around $77,588.

bitcoinist7 saat önce

Why Bitcoin Price Failed To Breach $80K: An On-Chain Deep Dive

bitcoinist7 saat önce

XRP And Bitcoin Investors Are ‘Trapped’, But Is There A Way Out?

Crypto analyst RWA Investor claims that both XRP and Bitcoin short sellers are currently 'trapped.' He outlines a potential roadmap for XRP to reach a new all-time high of $7. The prediction involves XRP first breaking the $1.50-$1.60 range to rally to $2-$3, followed by a major pullback. A third wave is then expected to emerge, culminating in a final bear trap before a massive short squeeze propels the price to the $7 target. The analyst attributes this anticipated rally to Federal Reserve rate cuts and quantitative easing. Separately, analyst CasiTrades suggests XRP move to the $1.50-$1.53 range is still possible if Bitcoin approaches $79,900, provided XRP holds the $1.39 support level.

bitcoinist8 saat önce

XRP And Bitcoin Investors Are ‘Trapped’, But Is There A Way Out?

bitcoinist8 saat önce

İşlemler

Spot
Futures
活动图片