Tornado Cash and Samourai lawyers accuse prosecutors of hiding key evidence

Mars Finance News, on May 18, according to The Block, defense lawyers for Samourai Wallet and Tornado Cash have accused the prosecution of failing to properly disclose a phone call with a senior FinCEN employee, thereby concealing evidence that could be crucial to the case. The call record from August 23, 2023, between a senior FinCEN official and the prosecution shows that the agency believes non-custodial protocols "may not constitute a Money Services Business (MSB)," which would directly affect whether the charges of "operating a remittance business without a license" against Samourai Wallet and Tornado Cash can be sustained. Tornado Cash co-founder Roman Storm and Samourai Wallet co-founders Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill have been charged by US prosecutors with money laundering, sanctions violations, and operating a remittance business without a license. The defense argues that the FinCEN call records constitute exculpatory evidence that was concealed and emphasizes the non-custodial nature as a core commonality between the two protocols. The prosecution countered by claiming they disclosed the communication months in advance and that the FinCEN official's opinion represents only an "informal personal view," insisting that Tornado Cash and Samourai have fundamentally different operating models.