Roman Sterlingov, the person behind cryptocurrency mixer Bitcoin Fog, is difficult a possible 30-year jail sentence after being convicted of a number of cash laundering fees.
In a 37-page sentencing memorandum filed within the U.S. District Courtroom for the District of Columbia, Sterling's protection crew says the 30- and 20-year sentences really useful by prosecutors and the probation workplace “considerably exceed” these imposed in comparable circumstances.
The protection argued that the suggestions had been disproportionately excessive due to the “cumulative impact” of varied enhancements that penalize completely different points of the identical conduct — particularly, working a large-scale anti-money laundering operation.
Conviction of washing garments
Sterlingov was convicted earlier this 12 months on a number of counts associated to working Bitcoin Fog, a service that allegedly facilitated the laundering of greater than $47 million in prison proceeds.
The federal government has portrayed him as a central determine in a classy scheme that allowed customers to anonymize bitcoin transactions, successfully making it tougher for regulation enforcement to hint unlawful actions equivalent to drug trafficking and different prison enterprises.
Prosecutors alleged that Bitcoin Fog, which Sterlingov operated between 2011 and 2021, was used to launder roughly $400 million in bitcoins linked to unlawful actions equivalent to drug trafficking, id theft and cybercrime.
Choose Randolph Moss, who’s overseeing the case, initially scheduled Sterling's sentencing for Aug. 21. However the court docket will now first hear arguments relating to the federal government's bid to grab property related to the bitcoin haze, together with 1,354 bitcoins which have sat idle since 2012 and a possible monetary judgment of $395 million.
Circumstantial proof
Nonetheless, Sterling's attorneys argued that the case in opposition to him relied closely on circumstantial proof, noting that key parts such because the Bitcoin Fog server, server logs, personal keys or ledger had been by no means entered into proof throughout the trial.
The protection emphasised that he had no prior prison historical past and had in any other case led an exemplary life. She additionally argued that the jury's verdict was in line with aiding and abetting slightly than immediately directing the Bitcoin Fog operation, suggesting that Sterling's position was much less central than prosecutors portrayed.
The protection additional argued that the sentencing pointers, that are closely influenced by the greenback quantities concerned within the crime, didn’t precisely mirror Sterling's guilt.
She argued that the rule of thumb's give attention to the worth of the laundered funds was misplaced on this case as a result of it didn’t bear in mind the truth that Sterlingov didn’t personally revenue from the transactions and that lots of the funds handed by the Bitcoin fog with out his direct involvement.
