Key takeaways:
- While his attorneys get ready to file an appeal against allegations of money laundering, Alexey Pertsev, the creator of the crypto mixer Tornado Cash, has been refused bail.
- Pertsev’s request for computer access violated the court’s safety policy, but the court added that his protracted detention would not hinder his capacity to prepare his defense.
While his attorneys get ready to file an appeal against allegations of money laundering, Alexey Pertsev, the creator of the crypto mixer Tornado Cash, has been refused bail.
Keith Cheng, Pertsev’s defense attorney, told DL News that the denial of his bail request caught him off guard. He also mentioned that Pertsev’s desire to use a computer to help him prepare for his appeal was turned down.
Pertsev’s request for computer access violated the court’s safety policy, but the court added that his protracted detention would not hinder his capacity to prepare his defense.
Judith de Boer, Pertsev’s attorney, expressed her disagreement with the court’s ruling, calling pre-trial detention involving “such fundamental” legal problems “unacceptable.” Furthermore, de Boer said:
“This unprecedented case addresses when a software developer can be criminally liable for third-party misuse,”
In the Netherlands, on May 14, the’s-Hertogenbosch Court of Appeal convicted Pertsev guilty of money laundering.
Due to allegations that the developer used the platform to launder $1.2 billion in illegal assets, he received a five-year and four-month prison sentence. This is the third time that Pertsev’s bail request has been turned down, as of July 13th.
Based on the prosecution’s claim that Pertsev constituted a flight risk, a Dutch judge rejected the developer’s request to be freed under observation in November 2023.
According to the prosecution, Pertsev was a key player in Tornado Cash’s operations. In February, the developer’s bail was again turned down.
In a post on July 12 on X, an X account connected to JusticeDAO—the group that handles gathering money for the Tornado Cash developers’ legal defense—called the decision a “gross miscarriage of justice”. The post stated:
“Alexey will spend the next year in jail while his legal team prepares for the appeal hearing. This is a gross miscarriage of justice. Developers do not belong in jail for the actions of third parties,”
Throughout his trial in March, Pertsev maintained that he was not responsible for the deeds of anyone who exploited the Tornado Cash protocol for illicit or immoral ends.
The court dismissed this claim, stating that Pertsev and the other Tornado Cash co-founders would have taken additional steps to guarantee high security if they had genuinely sought to stop criminals from misusing the protocol.
