Ethereum co-founder, Vitalik Buterin has stepped in to support Tornado Cash developers Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev as they face legal challenges stemming from their work with the cryptocurrency mixer.
In a Dec 31 announcement by the Juicebox project “Free Pertsev and Storm,” Buterin was credited with donating 50 Ether (ETH), valued at approximately $170,000, to assist with the developers’ legal expenses.
The donation represents roughly 25% of the $650,000 currently available through JusticeDAO for their legal defense ahead of Storm’s upcoming trial.
Thank you @VitalikButerin for helping us end the year on a good note, with a 50 ETH donation to both Roman and Alexey’s legal aid.
ZK is the future. https://t.co/WIY8B6v4qa pic.twitter.com/sM16LhnUc7
— Free Pertsev & Storm (@FreeAlexeyRoman) December 31, 2024
Vitalik Buterin Supports Tornado Cash
The Tornado Cash controversy began in 2022 when Dutch authorities arrested Alexey Pertsev on charges related to money laundering through the crypto mixer. In May 2024, Pertsev was found guilty and sentenced to over five years in prison. He is currently appealing the verdict.
Meanwhile, United States prosecutors charged Roman Storm and Roman Semenov with money laundering, sanctions violations, and fraud tied to Tornado Cash operations. Storm, released on bail, faces trial on April 14, while Semenov remains at large.
Tornado Cash first came under fire when the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned the mixer in August 2022. Authorities alleged that the service had been used by bad actors, including North Korean hackers, to launder over $7 billion in cryptocurrency since 2019.
The sanctions and subsequent charges against the developers sparked widespread criticism within the crypto community, with many arguing that open-source software should not lead to criminal liability for developers.
Also Read: Switzerland Moves to Make Bitcoin a Constitutional Right
