Roman Storm's retrial postponed to April 2027

Awaiting judgment on not guilty plea, retrial schedule pushed back by six months

The retrial of Roman Storm, co-founder and developer of the cryptocurrency mixer Tornado Cash, has been postponed from October 26, 2026, to April 26, 2027.

The delay is due to the pending motion for a not guilty verdict that Storm has submitted. The retrial will revisit the charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions, which the jury in the initial trial could not reach a verdict on.

Retrial set for April 2027, two charges to be reconsidered

Judge Katherine Polk Failla of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York decided on August 25 to postpone Storm's retrial to April 26, 2027. A pre-trial conference is scheduled for April 20 of the same year at the Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse in Manhattan.

The defense requested the postponement on August 3, stating that at least 90 days would be needed for retrial preparations after the court's ruling on the not guilty plea. Although the prosecution opposed the request, Judge Failla acknowledged the necessity of the pending motion and preparation time, allowing the schedule change.

Storm was found guilty in the initial trial in August 2025 for conspiring to operate an unlicensed money transfer business, which carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison. However, the jury could not reach a unanimous decision on the charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to violate U.S. sanctions, leaving the conclusion unresolved.

While the prosecution seeks a retrial on these two charges, Storm argues that the prosecution has not proven he intentionally aided criminals in the misuse of Tornado Cash, seeking a not guilty verdict.

Chainalysis's relayer operations become a new point of contention

As the retrial date is set, Storm raised questions again about the relationship between Chainalysis, a blockchain analysis firm, and Tornado Cash on the same day.

According to court records, Chainalysis operated relayer nodes for Tornado Cash for a certain period in 2022. Relayers serve as intermediaries for users to withdraw funds without directly revealing their wallet addresses, and it was explained in court in July 2025 that the prosecution had no dispute regarding the fees earned by Chainalysis from these transactions. However, Chainalysis later reportedly assisted the U.S. government in investigations related to Tornado Cash transactions.

Storm is being prosecuted based on the software he developed, while he points out the discrepancy in treatment, as the company that cooperated with the government investigation profited from transactions using the same protocol. However, the government explained that there is no evidence indicating that Storm was aware of Chainalysis's operation of the relayer.

The judgment on Storm's not guilty plea is still pending, and the focus will be on how the court decides in the future.

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