DOJ invokes Bitcoin Fog ruling in potential blow to Roman Storm acquittal bid

Federal prosecutors cited a recent appeals court ruling involving cryptocurrency mixer Bitcoin Fog as supplemental authority for their opposition to Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm’s acquittal.

In a Monday filing, prosecutors cited a Sept. 25 appeals court ruling that affirmed the convictions and sentence of Bitcoin Fog operator Roman Sterlingov.

The D.C. Circuit held that venue in Washington, D.C., was proper for all four counts. For the money-laundering counts, it relied on evidence that an undercover agent conducted Bitcoin Fog transactions from his D.C. office. For the unlicensed money-transmission counts, it found sufficient evidence that Bitcoin Fog had served customers in the district.

Prosecutors said the Bitcoin Fog ruling “directly supports” their position in Storm’s case, arguing that Tornado Cash activity in Manhattan was sufficient to establish venue in the Southern District of New York for Storm’s money-laundering and unlicensed money-transmission conspiracy charges. They pointed to testimony from Shakeeb Ahmed, who said he used Tornado Cash from his Manhattan apartment.

Judge Katherine Polk Failla heard arguments on Storm’s acquittal motion in April 2026 and has not yet ruled. A retrial on the money-laundering and sanctions conspiracy counts on which the jury deadlocked is scheduled for April 26, 2027, if those charges remain pending.

A jury convicted Storm in August 2025 of conspiring to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business but deadlocked on the money-laundering and sanctions-conspiracy charges. Storm filed his post-trial motion for acquittal in September 2025, arguing that prosecutors failed to prove he intended to help criminals misuse Tornado Cash.

In his 2025 acquittal motion, Storm argued that Ahmed’s use of Tornado Cash from his Manhattan apartment was not enough to establish venue in New York because the transactions did not further the alleged conspiracy.

Prosecutors argued that even short-lived deposits can help a mixer by increasing the pool of transactions used to obscure the movement of funds. They said that reasoning applies to Ahmed’s Tornado Cash activity and supports their argument that his use of the service furthered the alleged conspiracy.

Storm criticized the filing in an X on Monday, saying, “The DOJ is still coming after me with everything it has.”

He also cited the Treasury Department’s Monday announcement that it would withdraw its proposed crypto-mixer rule, arguing that the government is taking conflicting approaches to crypto privacy tools.