U.S. federal prosecutors told the Southern District of New York on Oct. 7 that an appeals court decision upholding the conviction of Bitcoin Fog founder Roman Sterlingov supports trying Tornado Cash founder Roman Storm in New York. Prosecutors argued that the Bitcoin Fog case established that user transactions within a judicial district can help establish venue. In Storm’s case, they said Tornado Cash user Shakeeb Ahmed used the service from his Manhattan apartment, which they say is enough to show that part of the charged conduct took place in New York. Storm’s lawyers had previously argued that New York lacks proper venue and sought to overturn the conviction. Storm was found guilty by a New York jury in August 2025 on a conspiracy charge tied to operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, while the jury did not reach a verdict on money laundering and sanctions-related counts. A retrial is currently set for April 26, 2027. Storm has pushed back by pointing to FinCEN’s withdrawal this week of a regulatory proposal on international crypto mixing transactions, saying one reason cited was concern that an overly broad definition of “mixing” could chill lawful activity.
U.S. federal prosecutors filed a document with the Southern District of New York on Oct. 7 saying that a D.C. Circuit ruling upholding the conviction of Bitcoin Fog founder Roman Sterlingov supports venue for Tornado Cash founder Roman Storm’s trial in New York.
Prosecutors said the Bitcoin Fog case showed that user transactions carried out within the relevant judicial district can establish a basis for venue. In the Tornado Cash case, they argued that user Shakeeb Ahmed used the service from his Manhattan apartment, which is enough to show that part of the conduct underlying the charges took place in New York.
Storm’s lawyers had previously argued that New York was not a proper venue for the case and sought to overturn the conviction.
According to the filing, a New York jury found Storm guilty in August 2025 of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. The jury did not reach a verdict on money laundering and sanctions-related charges. A retrial is currently scheduled for April 26, 2027.
Storm, for his part, argued that the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN, withdrew a regulatory proposal this week targeting international crypto mixing transactions. He said one reason given was market concern that an overly broad definition of “mixing” could create a chilling effect on lawful activity.
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