Tornado Cash Developer Receives Extended Jail Sentence
Alexey Pertsev, the mastermind behind the cryptocurrency mixer, Tornado Cash, is said to be getting out of prison in February 2023 after having his sentence lengthened. He was accused of aiding in money laundering through his platform.
Extended Jail Time
Alexey Pertsev was taken into custody in August after the platform Tornado cash was shut down. However, before the Dutch Crime Agency took steps to make this arrest, the U.S. Treasury Department had warned him of aiding financial crimes on his platform.
Pertsev would spend the next three months in jail before being freed in late February 2023, according to reports. Originally scheduled for release at the end of November, Pertsev’s sentence was prolonged by the authorities because it is believed he poses a threat to society.
Keith Chang, the attorney in charge of Pertsev’s case, expressed his displeasure with the processes and the decision, claiming that the judges who presided over the case were unfamiliar with this case and as a result rendered this conclusion.
Chang also stated that the current criminal legislation or regulation is entirely focused on bitcoin mixers and they utilised this precedent to make decisions.
He does, however, claim that the Tornado Cash mixer case is quite distinct from any Bitcoin mixer criminal prosecution.
Pertsev was sanctioned by the US authorities in early August for allegedly assisting in money laundering via his platform, saying it launders the profits of cyber crimes perpetrated against victims located in the US.
Pertsev is said to have perpetuated the laundering of over $6.5 billion in virtual assets since 2019 through his platform which many have stated to be false because this figure is around the total amount mixed on the platform.
The Dutch police arrested and imprisoned Pertsev just days after the US government sanctioned him for his dealings. He was later sentenced to three months in prison.
Crypto Community Stands With Pertsev
There was a stir in the crypto community as a result of this arrest. Most responses supported the developer’s position against this arrest. Stephan Livera, a Bitcoin podcaster, used his platform to defend the Russian developer’s innocence.
According to Livera, Pertsev is not to blame for wrongdoers using his platform and crypto mixer to propagate evil.
He continued by using an illustration to support his argument, asking whether it was fair to criticize road builders for their work if criminals later exploited the structures or roads they had constructed for illicit purposes.
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