Disgraced FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried under fire for leaking documents, intimidating witnesses
- Ex-CEO of bankrupt exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, reportedly made 100 calls to a New York Times reporter.
- Per Assistant US Attorney, Bankman-Fried used his bail freedom to intimidate Caroline Ellison by leaking private documents.
- The US Attorney demanded a revocation of his bail, for which the hearing will begin on Thursday.
The FTX saga continues to make headlines as the founder and former Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sam Bankman-Fried has been warned by the Judge presiding over the criminal case against him. In the most recent development, the ex-CEO has placed himself in the position of potentially going back to jail.
Sam Bankman-Fried could lose his freedom
The US government charged Sam Bankman-Fried with multiple criminal charges, and the case is set to go to trial at the beginning of October after the FTX founder pleaded not guilty. Post his arrest, he was released on a $250 million bail that is now under the threat of being revoked.
According to the court documents, Assistant US Attorney Danielle Sassoon, on behalf of the government, requested remand and revocation of Bankman-Fried’s bail. The reason given by Sassoon was that the former FTX executive had been using his bail freedom to intimidate his former colleague, Caroline Ellison.
Ellison pleaded guilty to her charges of multiple fraud and money laundering. She also provided details regarding Sam Bankman-Fried’s involvement in receiving millions of dollars worth of loans from Alameda Research.
According to the hearing on July 26 in District Court, Sam Bankman-Fried made over 100 calls to a New York Times reporter, Michael Lewis. Lewis also visited the FTX founder’s residence, where Bankman-Fried is suspected to have shared Ellison’s private documents and journals.
In response to the request for the revocation of bail, Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers stated,
“This is a complex case, we could not work with our client if he were remanded. We ask you to deny the application. Or given us a change to make a written submission.
To this, Judge Kaplan provided the US Attorneys a deadline of July 28 to present their arguments, to which Bankman-Fried’s lawyers will be allowed to respond by August 3. However, towards the end of the hearing, Judge Kaplan was noted stating to Sam Bankman-Fried to take the case seriously.
SBF's lawyer: We'll respond by Aug 1.
— Inner City Press (@innercitypress) July 26, 2023
Judge Kaplan: Reply August 3. I'll docket the order. I am mindful of the First Amendment, and of the government's interest. Mr. Bankman-Fried, you better take it seriously too.
Adjourned - story soon on https://t.co/mmos6LonY0
On the other hand, under the management of CEO John Ray, FTX is expected to relaunch the exchange and make its creditors whole. An option to do so was also being speculated in the form of shares of exchanges that the creditors would hold as reimbursement.
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Author
Aaryamann Shrivastava
FXStreet
Aaryamann Shrivastava is a Cryptocurrency journalist and market analyst with over 1,000 articles under his name. Graduated with an Honours in Journalism, he has been part of the crypto industry for more than a year now.
