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Roman Storm's defence squad wants to cognize if the U.S. Department of Justice is withholding immoderate accusation that whitethorn assistance the Tornado Cash developer's case.
In a missive filed precocious Friday, defence attorneys said caller disclosures successful another, somewhat similar, lawsuit raised concerns that prosecutors either misled the justice overseeing the lawsuit oregon different was playing "fast and loose."
"The defence precocious learned that the authorities has possessed exculpatory materials since August 2023 that spell to the bosom of a cardinal contented successful this case: whether a noncustodial cryptocurrency mixer is simply a 'money transmitting business' for purposes of 18 U.S.C. § 1960," the filing said. "The government’s nonaccomplishment to nutrient those materials successful the autumn of 2023, erstwhile Roman Storm was indicted and archetypal appeared successful court, constitutes a Brady usurpation that has materially prejudiced his defense," adjacent aft the DOJ said it would drop a portion of its lawsuit against Storm.
Read more: Conduct Versus Code May Be the Defining Question successful Roman Storm Prosecution
Storm's squad is referencing the DOJ's lawsuit against 2 developers of Samourai Wallet, different crypto mixer. In that case, defence attorneys said earlier this month that prosecutors delayed sharing that 2 Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) officials told the DOJ that the mixer did not look similar a wealth transmitter.
Prosecutors denied the allegations successful a court filing, saying their disclosures were timely and that the FinCEN officials' views were not ceremonial guidance.
The DOJ said the 2 cases are lone "superficially similar," the defence filing said Friday.
"But what the authorities characterizes arsenic a superficial similarity is, successful fact, the halfway diagnostic that lies astatine the bosom of the conflicting interpretations of FinCEN guidance and the scope of Section 1960:
the noncustodial quality of some protocols," the filing said. "That users exercised sole power implicit their assets was a ground for Mr. Storm’s question to disregard and to compel find of FinCEN materials."
The defence is asking Judge Katherine Polk Failla, who's overseeing the case, to bid the DOJ to reappraisal immoderate materials it whitethorn person that could assistance Storm's lawsuit and stock the documents referenced successful the Samourai case, arsenic good arsenic erstwhile Storm's prosecutors learned astir those materials.
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