The #FreeAlex Campaign seeks desperate legal funds to assist Alexey Pertsev and Roman Storm in their defense against Tornado Cash (TORN) allegations.
Caught in a grueling legal clash in the Netherlands, Tornado Cash's Alexey Pertsev reached out on X (formerly Twitter) on August 10, seeking donations to combat his ballooning legal expenses.
Sentenced to five years in prison, Pertsev aims to raise between $750,000 and $1 million. The call for donations is being channeled through a decentralized fundraiser on Juicebox, emphasizing the fight for privacy and open-source development principles.
"If you believe developers shouldn't face jail time for their code, please consider donating ETH," stated the Juicebox campaign.
#FREEALEX: Fundraising Goals and Community Response
Support for the Tornado Cash developer has flooded in with the "Defend Alexey" fundraiser on Juicebox netting over 15.35 Ethereum, more than $40,000.
"It's time to take a stand with Alexey and fight for what's right," urged the support account for Pertsev.
(Juicebox)Pertsev is no stranger to crypto-community backing. Vitalik Buterin, Ethereum's co-founder, previously donated over $100,000 to support him and his colleague Roman Storm, who is currently detained in the US.
Pertsev faces heavy charges: money laundering, sanctions breaches, and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting service via Tornado Cash. The blockchain community is watching closely, concerned about the precedent it sets for developers whose open-source code gets misused.
"Everyone who cares about justice and human freedom must fight the insane, authoritarian idea that people using open source software in a way the government doesn't like makes the developer criminally/civilly liable," commented Daniel Buchner, Head of Decentralized Identity at Block.
Rallying the Crypto Community for Tornado Cash Developers
Pertsev's locked up without bail, alongside Roman Storm, barred from even touching a computer as he gears up for his appeal.
This case is part of a broader crackdown on privacy protocols, which regulators claim create crypto scams and help terrorists and rogue states hide dirty money.
"That Alex's code was primarily used for shitcoins is irrelevant," stated Buchner.
The US has targeted several crypto privacy services, including Samourai Wallet's co-founders. We'll be following this case closely.
