A US court sentenced a crypto mixer operator to three years in jail. This is part of a larger crackdown on crypto mixers, which are often used for illegal activities like money laundering and funding hacks.
Helix Founder’s Downfall
Larry Harmon, the founder of the crypto mixer Helix, is the latest to face the music. He pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy in 2021. Helix was used to launder over $300 million in Bitcoin, mostly from drug trafficking. Harmon also ran Grams, a darknet search engine that sold illegal stuff like hacking tools and drugs. Helix and Grams worked together, with Harmon taking a cut of the profits. He ran Helix from 2014 to 2017, shutting it down before his 2020 arrest.
On November 15th, a judge sentenced Harmon to three years in prison, plus three years of supervised release. Prosecutors wanted six years, but Harmon’s cooperation with law enforcement helped reduce his sentence. He also gets to forfeit over $700 million in assets.
More Crypto Mixer Crackdowns
Harmon isn’t the only crypto mixer operator facing jail time. Just a week earlier, another mixer operator got a 12.5-year sentence.
The big case everyone’s watching is against Roman Storm, a Tornado Cash co-founder. He’s facing trial in April 2025 and could get 45 years if convicted. The crypto community is pretty upset about this, arguing that developers shouldn’t be punished for how others use their software. They’ve even set up a legal defense fund for him, with donations from big names in the crypto world.
