NEW YORK — A 12-person jury has been seated for the criminal trial of Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm, with opening arguments commencing this afternoon at the Thurgood Marshall courthouse in lower Manhattan.
This jury, comprised of seven women and five men from diverse backgrounds and ages, will determine whether the U.S. Department of Justice can establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Storm engaged in conspiracy related to money laundering, sanction violations, and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. Jury selection commenced on Monday.
Among the jurors, one serves as an IT manager and another has a position at the surveillance and data analytics firm Palantir. Their educational backgrounds range from high school diplomas to master’s degrees, and their ages span from individuals in their 20s to those in their 60s.
Following the jury’s selection, the court briefly adjourned; however, opening arguments are expected to begin shortly, with the trial anticipated to last approximately four weeks.
Read more: Right to Code? Tornado Cash Dev Roman Storm’s Money Laundering Trial Kicks Off Monday
As the trial opens, Storm’s defense team is actively seeking to exclude certain evidence that prosecutors plan to present, particularly communications between Storm and fellow Tornado Cash developer, Alexey Pertsev.
The defense contends that some of the messages referenced by prosecutors lack proper attribution and misrepresent their origin, including an inquiry made by a former CoinDesk reporter following the security breach at Axie Infinity’s Ronin Bridge.
In the indictment against Storm, prosecutors assert that the inquiry originated from Pertsev. The indictment states: “[Pertsev] sent a message to Storm and [Tornado Cash developer Roman Semenov] through the Encrypted App, saying ‘Heya, anyone around to chat about axie? Would like to ask a few general questions about how one goes about cashing out 600 mil,'” as detailed in paragraph 57.
However, this message was actually sent by a former CoinDesk reporter to a group chat that included other now-former CoinDesk journalists and editors, along with Storm and Pertsev.
In their recent court filing, the defense pointed out, “That chat is just one example of many,” emphasizing the complexity of the evidence being presented.
CORRECTION (July 15, 2025, 18:15 UTC): Corrects a truncated sentence about the jurors’ educational backgrounds.
