Tornado Cash developer will remain stuck in the Netherlands for even longer

Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev must remain in prison until February 2023. That was during one this week hearing established in Den Bosch. Pertsev, who has been detained since August this year, was supposed to be released this month. However, according to the judge, he is a ‘flight hazard’. Hence the choice of late release.

Money laundering in crypto

The initial reason for Pertsev’s detention is the fact that his Tornado Cash platform has been used for money laundering. According to estimates from a US study, more than $ 7 billion worth of cryptocurrencies have been laundered since 2019. Of this, 450 million was part of the assets that the Korean hacking group Lazarus Group captured.

In early August, the United States imposed official sanctions on the platform. The reason for these sanctions, as mentioned earlier, was money laundering.

“We are sanctioning Tornado Cash today. It is a virtual currency mixer that launders the loot from cyber crimes, including that of victims in the United States. They have failed multiple times to prevent money laundering by criminal entities.”

A few days after the sanctions, Pertsev was arrested by the Dutch authorities and sentenced to a minimum of 90 days in prison. The crypto community was initially very critical of the arrest. There was criticism that it is not Pertsev’s fault that certain figures use his platform for criminal purposes.

“Imagine that road workers are arrested. Because criminals use this route.”

Flight hazard?

Pertsev is a Russian living in the Netherlands and, according to the court, there is a very high risk that he will flee to his native country if he is released early. He requested his release on bail. In his own words, he would accept all restrictions if he were released early. His request was not answered.

“I will accept all restrictions. I just want to go to church with my wife.”

Pertsev’s lawyer said he was very disappointed with the court’s verdict. According to him, the court was not well informed about the subject in question. He also argued that anti-money laundering measures would conflict with Tornado Cash’s privacy policy. All arguments of the defending party were rejected by the court.

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