The jury deciding the fate of two men charged with money laundering and fraud related to the $25 million misuse of the Ethereum blockchain has posed a series of detailed questions to the judge during deliberations, indicating that key aspects of the case are under close scrutiny.
On Wednesday, jurors in the criminal trial of Anton Perer Bueno and James Perer Bueno began deliberating their verdict after three weeks of hearing different theories of the case from defense attorneys and U.S. prosecutors.
The brothers are accused of using a Maximum Extractable Value (MEV) bot to extract approximately $25 million in digital assets from the Ethereum blockchain in 2023, in what prosecutors describe as a fraudulent scheme.
After a full day of reviewing the facts of the case and asking questions of the judge, the second day of deliberations began on Thursday.
Inner City Press reported from the courtroom that the men and women on the jury asked the judge to clarify the “definition of good faith” and “false representations,” likely referring to the government’s claim that the brothers “deceived victims” by posing as “honest validators” on Ethereum.
The judge reportedly told jurors on Wednesday that “the pretense is intentional to make people believe something false.”
MEV attacks against Ethereum occur when traders or validators exploit transaction orders on the blockchain for profit. In the Perer Buenos case, the brothers allegedly used an automated MEV bot to “trick” users into making transactions. The exploit, which had been planned by the duo for months, reportedly allowed them to make $25 million in 2023 in just 12 seconds.
Related: Coin Center submits brief in Ethereum MEV trial, refutes “honest verification” theory
We will continue to discuss and ask questions.
As of Thursday morning, jurors did not appear to be that close to announcing a verdict. They asked the court to produce a transcript of Brett Hemenway Faulk’s testimony on Monday.
Faulk, a research professor at the University of Pennsylvania, reportedly testified regarding transactions in Ethereum, saying that MEV is “available to those who get it first” and employs a “hyper-aggressive” strategy.
The Perer Bueno brothers are each charged with wire fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to receive stolen property. If convicted, the judge could impose up to 20 years in prison on each charge.
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