Prosecutors in the Roman Storm case are attempting to circumvent a potential court order to hand over additional evidence that could aid Storm's defense. In a recent court filing, prosecutors countered Storm's lawyers' claims that they had failed to fulfill their obligations under the Brady doctrine, which requires prosecutors to disclose any potentially helpful evidence to the defense. The dispute centers around a recent revelation in a separate case involving Samourai Wallet co-founders, where prosecutors admitted to discussing the case with FinCEN officials prior to filing charges. The officials allegedly stated that the crypto mixing service did not qualify as a money transmitting business under their guidelines.
Prosecutors in the Storm case argue that this conversation is irrelevant to their case, as it specifically pertained to Samourai Wallet and not Tornado Cash. They claim that the discussion was merely an opinion and not a factual piece of evidence, and therefore not subject to disclosure. The prosecution also asserts that they did not engage in similar discussions with FinCEN regarding Tornado Cash, and that any such opinion would be inadmissible and not considered Brady material. The case against Storm is scheduled to commence on July 14 in New York.