The co-founder of Ethereum, Vitalik Buterin, has donated 50 ETH
ETH
$3,339.67
The donation, valued at about $170,000, was announced via Pertsev & Storm’s free X account. They said: “Thank you Vitalik Buterin for helping us end the year on a good note, with a donation of 50 ETH for Roman and Alexey’s legal aid.”
Buterin’s contribution. represents approximately 25% of the legal fund of $650,000 available to developers through JusticeDAO.
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Storm also expressed his gratitude by posting on his own X account. He saying:
Huge thanks to Vitalik Buterin for his generous donation to my legal defense fund. Your unwavering support and leadership by example continue to inspire us all.
Pertsev and Storm have faced legal challenges due to their involvement with Tornado Casha cryptocurrency mixing service. The lawsuit began after the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) placed Tornado Cash on its sanctions list in August 2022.
Pertsev was arrested in 2022 by Dutch authorities and later convicted of money laundering in 2024. He received a sentence of more than five years.
Meanwhile, US prosecutors have accused Storm and another developer, Roman Semenov, of money laundering, sanctions violations and fraud.. Storm is currently out on bail awaiting his trial, which is set to begin in April 2025, while Semenov remains out of reach of authorities.
In December 2024, Buterin also made headlines by becoming a foster father to a viral hippo, Moo Deng. What did he say about it? Read the full story.
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