Federal prosecutors have turned to a recent appellate court decision involving the cryptocurrency mixer Bitcoin Fog as supplemental authority in their ongoing legal battle against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm. The government is leveraging the precedent to bolster its opposition to Storm’s pending motion for an acquittal, marking the latest chapter in a high-stakes prosecution that has closely watched implications for the intersection of software development, digital privacy, and criminal law.
In a filing submitted on Monday, federal prosecutors pointed the court toward a September 25 appeals court ruling that affirmed the convictions and prison sentence of Roman Sterlingov, the operator of the defunct cryptocurrency mixing service Bitcoin Fog. The ruling, handed down by the D.C. Circuit, affirmed that venue in Washington, D.C., was proper across all four counts brought against Sterlingov.
To justify venue for the money-laundering counts in the Sterlingov case, the D.C. Circuit relied on evidence showing that an undercover law enforcement agent had conducted Bitcoin Fog transactions directly from an office located within the district. Furthermore, for the unlicensed money-transmission charges, the court determined there was sufficient evidence demonstrating that Bitcoin Fog had actively served customers situated within the same judicial district.
Prosecutors argue that this recent appellate logic directly supports their position in the Roman Storm proceedings. Specifically, they contend that Tornado Cash activity originating within Manhattan is entirely sufficient to establish proper venue in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York for the money-laundering and unlicensed money-transmission conspiracy charges leveled against Storm. To substantiate this point, the government directed the court’s attention to previous testimony provided by Shakeeb Ahmed, who openly stated during judicial proceedings that he had utilized Tornado Cash from his residential apartment in Manhattan.
The legal arguments regarding venue and Storm’s post-trial fate currently sit before U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla. Judge Failla initially heard oral arguments concerning Storm’s motion for an acquittal back in April 2026, though a formal ruling has not yet been handed down. Meanwhile, a potential retrial regarding the money-laundering and sanctions-conspiracy charges—counts upon which the original jury deadlocked—has been scheduled for April 26, 2027, provided that those specific charges remain pending before the court.
The legal jeopardy facing the Tornado Cash developer stems from a trial outcome in August 2025, when a federal jury convicted Storm of conspiring to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. However, the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on the separate money-laundering and sanctions-conspiracy charges, leading to the mistrial on those counts. Following that verdict, Storm filed his post-trial motion for an acquittal in September 2025, arguing fundamentally that federal prosecutors had failed to carry their burden of proving he possessed the specific criminal intent required to aid and abet criminals in misusing the Tornado Cash privacy protocol.
DOJ Leans on Bitcoin Fog Ruling in New York Argument
The central friction point in the venue dispute traces back to arguments first raised in Storm’s 2025 acquittal motion. At that time, Storm’s defense team argued that Shakeeb Ahmed’s isolated use of Tornado Cash from a Manhattan apartment was legally inadequate to establish proper venue in New York. The defense maintained that these specific transactions did not meaningfully further the alleged conspiracy for which Storm was indicted.
Federal prosecutors, however, have pushed back aggressively against this interpretation. They have argued that even short-lived deposits into a privacy-enhancing mixing protocol provide substantial utility to the service by expanding the underlying pool of transactions. This expanded pool is precisely what obscures the trail and movement of digital funds, according to the government. Prosecutors maintain that this exact line of reasoning applies directly to Ahmed’s Tornado Cash activity, thereby reinforcing their stance that his usage directly advanced the scope of the alleged criminal enterprise.
The ongoing litigation has drawn intense scrutiny from privacy advocates and digital asset developers alike, who view the prosecution of open-source software creators as a dangerous precedent. Following the Department of Justice’s latest filing, Storm took to social media to voice his frustrations with the government’s persistent legal pressure. Writing on the X platform on Monday, Storm criticized the filing bluntly, stating, "The DOJ is still coming after me with everything it has."
In his social media commentary, Storm also drew attention to a concurrent policy shift within the federal government, highlighting an announcement made by the U.S. Department of the Treasury on Monday. The Treasury Department stated that it would officially withdraw its previously proposed rule concerning cryptocurrency mixing services. Storm pointed to this regulatory reversal as evidence that the federal government is currently pursuing conflicting and contradictory approaches regarding privacy-enhancing tools within the digital asset ecosystem, raising questions about regulatory clarity as his legal battle proceeds toward potential appellate challenges and future court dates.
