Vitalik Buterin Donates 30 ETH to ‘Free Alexey & Roman’ Campaign

Vitalik Buterin, the co-founder of Ethereum, gave 30 ETH, or around $113,000, to the Juicebox campaign “Free Alexey & Roman” on May 8. This payment helps Roman Storm and Alexey Pertsev, who are facing legal issues because of their affiliation with Tornado Cash.

Buterin has publicly criticized the severe sentences against Pertsev and Storm while continuously supporting them. He described Pertsev’s 64-month prison term as “really unfortunate” when speaking at DappCon in Berlin. Creating software with privacy in mind should be “a totally legal and legit way to fight for privacy,” according to him.

Despite Buterin’s advocacy, the Dutch court found Pertsev guilty of money laundering through the software he created. This ruling has significant implications for Storm, who faces similar charges in the United States.

Tornado Cash and similar crypto mixers have faced intense regulatory scrutiny due to their potential misuse by criminals. However, Buterin remains hopeful, expecting “positive clarity” in Storm’s upcoming U.S. trial. He emphasizes the importance of privacy for “common people” and not just for illicit activities.

Support from the Privacy Community

Buterin is a fervent supporter of privacy-focused cryptocurrency tools. He has promoted the development of next-gen solutions like Railgun and 0xbow, asserting that privacy tools are essential for everyone.

In addition to Buterin, prominent privacy advocate Edward Snowden has also supported the Tornado Cash legal defense. Snowden, a former NSA whistleblower, has called the case against Tornado Cash “deeply illiberal and profoundly authoritarian.” He echoed Buterin’s views, stating that “privacy is not a crime.”

Following Buterin’s donation, the campaign saw numerous smaller contributions in ETH, accompanied by messages like “justice finally comes.” As of the time of publication, the ‘Free Alexey & Roman’ campaign has raised a total of 559.81 ETH, approximately $2 million.