Sterlingov Appeal: The Criminalization of Privacy
Sterlingov Appeal: The Criminalization of Privacy
https://www.therage.co/sterlingov-appeal-the-criminalization-of-privacy/
Publish Date: 2026-05-12 16:05:00
Source Domain: www.therage.co
Roman Sterlingov was arrested in April 2021 at Los Angeles International Airport and indicted almost a year later, in July 2022, for running the early custodial bitcoin mixer, Bitcoin Fog. According to the government, the mixer processed close to $336 million in bitcoin, including $78 million related to darknet markets like Silk Road, Agora, AlphaBay and Evolution.
In 2024, Sterlingov, a Swedish national, was found guilty of conspiracy to commit money laundering as well as several counts of violations of federal and state money transmission laws, and sentenced to 12.5 years in prison.
Today, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit heard the defense and prosecution’s arguments in Sterlingov’s appeal, which mainly focused on the discussion of venue.
The three judge panel appears to have given the case a thorough read, Sterlingov’s attorney Tor Ekeland told The Rage after the hearing. “It’s a very smart court, I think they’re looking at this intensely, I have no idea what they’re going to do,” he added.
The People And The Machine
For the first time, Roman Sterlingov writes about the abuse he’s experiencing in prison, and what it means to lose your privacy – to those who are incarcerated, and to those living freely in society.
All Mixer Funds – Licit or Illicit – As Part of the Criminal Conspiracy
Opening their argumentation, the defense laid out that a federal agent sending an incriminating email to the Bitcoin Fog service, which was never responded to, and consequently utilizing the service from the District of Columbia, was not enough to establish venue against Sterlingov on the count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, as the federal agent conducting said transaction had no criminal intent, and no communication between the agent and the operator of Bitcoin Fog actually took place.
“In the indictment, there’s no reference to anything happening in DC. There’s no evidence, anywhere in the…
