In the highly followed Tornado Cash case, the defense has begun the witness statement phase, with Ethereum core developer Preston Van Loon taking the stand first to testify for the defendant Roman Storm.

Van Loon described Tornado Cash as an "Ethereum privacy tool" when appearing in the Southern District Court of New York. He admitted to using the service four times, transferring a total of 43 ETH, and emphasized that he did so for security reasons. He explained: "If hackers know the scale of my assets, I could become a target for attacks."

The prosecution then cross-examined Van Loon, primarily focusing on his private relationship with Storm and whether he had used trading platforms such as Coinbase. Storm's defense team indicated that they might also call multiple doctors and experts from the blockchain analysis company Chainalysis to testify.

The trial has entered its ninth day, and Storm faces multiple serious charges, including money laundering, operating a money transmission tool without authorization, and violating U.S. sanctions laws. Notably, Van Loon himself is also involved in a lawsuit against the Tornado Cash smart contract address sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury.

As the defense begins its statement, it is expected to conclude within the next two weeks. However, Storm still faces potential imprisonment risk. This case has sparked extensive discussions in the cryptocurrency field regarding the balance between privacy, security, and regulation, the outcome of which could have far-reaching implications for the entire industry.