Roman Storm Trial: Jury Fails to Reach Verdict on Money Laundering Charge

The Roman Storm trial has reached a crucial point, with the jury failing to reach a verdict on two charges. Meanwhile, the Tornado Cash co-founder was found guilty of a money transmitting charge, which carries a sentence of up to five years.

Jury Remains Undecided On Two Charges In Roman Storm Trial

According to Inner City Press, the jury said that there was no unanimity on the charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and violate North Korea sanctions. Meanwhile, it found the Tornado Cash co-founder guilty of conspiracy to run an unlicensed money transmittal business (the 1960 charge).

This follows recent reports that the U.S. DoJ was weighing bringing charges against crypto VC firm Dragonfly, which has invested in Tornado Cash. Following the verdict, journalist Eleanor Terrett also gave a rundown of what this verdict in the Roman Storm trial means.

Citing Storm’s lawyer Keri Axel, she noted that the money transmitting conviction carries a maximum sentence of five years. Meanwhile, the jury’s failure to reach a verdict on the other two charges means that the prosecutors can either choose to retry or dismiss the Roman Storm case.

Following the jury’s decision, Judge Katherine Polk Failla, who is overseeing the trial, denied the government’s motion to remand the Tornado Cash co-founder to jail.

She explained that there is a lot of fighting left in the case before sentencing, and that she believes Roman Storm will fight it. The U.S. prosecutors have yet to state what their next course of action in the case would be.

The Tornado Cash Co-founder Comments on Verdict

Roman Storm spoke to Terrett following the verdict in his case. The Tornado Cash co-founder remarked that the jury’s failure to reach a verdict is a big win and that he plans to fight the 1960 charge all the way.

He referenced Donald Trump’s ‘fight, fight, fight’ statement and said that he plans to do the same. His statement indicates that he will likely appeal the money transmitting charge. Meanwhile, Storm expressed relief at not having to remain in jail following the partial verdict.

Members of the crypto community have commented on what the money transmitting conviction in the Roman Storm trial could mean for decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols.

Ryan Adams of Bankless opined that the verdict means that crypto, DeFi, and privacy developers are still at risk. He added that the risk is higher now as a result of the precedent that the court has laid.

He added that it is unlikely that the DOJ will hunt down further privacy developers under the Trump administration. However, Adams claimed that the chilling effect is still very high for DeFi and crypto and that this verdict makes it slightly worse.

The Blockchain Association urged Roman Storm to appeal the money transmitting conviction and declared that they are ready to support the effort. The DeFi Education Fund also declared support for the Tornado Cash co-founder, stating that they will be behind him as he fights the 1960 charge conviction and appeals it to the Second Circuit.