PANews reported on May 13 that, according to The Block, a U.S. federal appeals court heard arguments in the appeal of Roman Sterlingov, operator of the Bitcoin Fog mixer. The core issue was whether the Justice Department's theory that global crypto services are governed by U.S. law holds true. Sterlingov was convicted in 2024 of conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating a money transfer business without a license.

Defense attorneys argued that the government "artificially created" a jurisdictional connection by having undercover agents in Washington, D.C., use Bitcoin Fog. Prosecutors countered that Bitcoin Fog knew its services covered U.S. users and should therefore be subject to U.S. law. The judge also questioned the reliability of the "IP overlap" analysis method used by the FBI. This case involves Section 1960 of the Federal Money Transmission Act, the same as the Tornado Cash and Samourai Wallet cases. The latest draft of the CLARITY Act proposes that Section 1960 only apply when the perpetrator has "specific intent and knowledge" to assist in the transfer of criminal funds.