SKN | Judge Should Not Acquit Tornado Cash Dev Roman Storm, Prosecutors Argue

Federal prosecutors say Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm should not be acquitted of the charges brought against him, arguing in a new filing that the evidence presented during his four-week trial was more than sufficient to support his conviction.

In a post-trial brief submitted last Wednesday, attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Southern District of New York pushed back against Storm’s motion for acquittal. Storm’s defense team filed the request in late September, seeking to overturn not only the conspiracy charge he was convicted on, but also the two charges on which the jury deadlocked: conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions law.

Storm’s attorneys argued the government failed to prove that he actually operated or controlled Tornado Cash, the now-sanctioned crypto mixer accused of facilitating money laundering for North Korean hackers and other illicit actors.

Prosecutors: Evidence Was Clear and Overwhelming

The DOJ rebutted this position sharply, asserting that Storm played an active and intentional role in the platform’s functionality and evolution.

According to prosecutors:

• Storm was a co-founder of Tornado Cash

• He and collaborators updated the platform’s user interface roughly 250 times between February 2020 and August 2022

• Roughly 96% of all Tornado Cash users accessed the service through the interface Storm helped control

“The defendant’s control was neither passive nor incidental,” prosecutors wrote, citing trial transcript pages documenting Storm’s involvement in changes that they say directly enabled cybercriminals to launder funds.

Deadlocked Charges Still on the Table

The DOJ also rejected Storm’s claim that evidence was insufficient to support the two deadlocked charges. Prosecutors urged the judge not to acquit on those counts, signaling that the government maintains interest in pursuing them further.

What Happens Next

District Judge Katherine Polk Failla will consider Storm’s request for acquittal and the government’s rebuttal in the coming weeks. Storm’s legal team has until Wednesday to submit its reply before the court determines next procedural steps.