Crypto Community Protests As Court Extends Tornado Cash Developer’s Stay In Jail

A judgment by a Netherland judge to keep Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev in jail for 90 more days has drawn widespread criticism from the crypto community. The decision came as Alexey Pertsev was waiting for charges. Engraved with the verdict, cryptocurrency enthusiasts have demanded the developer’s release, as per media reports.

Crypto community not happy with court

In Amsterdam, Pertsev’s supporters gathered, demanding the release of the developer and asking the government to target the criminals instead of developers.

The protestors found the status of the charges confusing as they believed that what the developer did was for the public good since he wrote the code for Tornado Cash.

Pertsev was arrested on 12 August on suspicion that he was involved in money laundering via the Tornado Cash mixer. Netherlands authorities stated that the mixer was used to hide money flows from criminals and was utilised for cryptocurrency scams as well as hacks. Earlier this month, the United States Treasury department laid down sanctions to addresses concerning Tornado Cash and barred residents from using the mixer because of its connection with decentralised finance (DeFi) hacks and exploits. Additionally, USD Coin (USDC) and Ether (ETH) addresses were also added to the Office of Foreign Asset Control’s block list.

It is to be noted that the developer has not been officially accused of any crime.

Will this impact open source communities?

Web3 developers are concerned that the arrest could harm open-source software developments, as more developers could also be held liable for how their code is being used. Those protesting against the arrest were seen carrying placards which read, “open source [code] is not a crime.”

As per reports, Pertsev’s wife, Xenia Malik, has also protested against the verdict. Malik has reportedly said that she was not allowed to speak to her husband, who is treated as if he is a dangerous criminal.