Sterlingov Defense Asks DOJ To Drop Charges Following Blanche Memo
Roman Sterlingov's case goes to appeal on June 16th.
The defense of alleged Bitcoin Fog operator Roman Sterlingov has asked the Department of Justice (DOJ) to drop the charges against the dual Swedish-Russian national following Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche's memo to end regulation by prosecution.
The Government's prosecution of Sterlingov, who was convicted for operating the early Bitcoin mixer Bitcoin Fog last year, "fits squarely within the types of victimless cryptocurrency regulatory prosecutions that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche [...] states DOJ will no longer pursue," the defense argues.
As highlighted in the letter, "no victims testified at Mr. Sterlingov’s trial or sentencing. No named victims were identified at any point by the Government. No eyewitnesses to Mr. Sterlingov’s alleged operation of the Bitcoin Fog mixer testified at trial because there were none. All the Governments’ witnesses at trial were after-the-fact expert witnesses or investigators testifying to their review of transactions that occurred years before, except for two criminal users of Bitcoin Fog," noting that Blanche had directed the DOJ to no longer prosecute mixer operators for the actions of their end users.
The defense further highlights that the jury in Sterlingov's case had been instructed to disregard whether the defendant had been aware of illicit activity on the service he allegedly operated, noting that the Blanche memo prerequisites that mixer operators – if charged – violated regulations willfully.
Roman Sterlingov was convicted on all counts last year and is currently serving a 150 month sentence in the US. The case goes to appeal on June 16th.
Meanwhile, the DOJ concluded its evaluation of the charges against Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm and will not drop charges against the defendant, finding the prosecution in line with Blanche's instructions – highlighting that the Blanche memo has left enough leeway for prosecutors to continue prosecuting the developers of privacy services.
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