By Luc Cohen
Sam Bankman-Fried, who has lengthy denied stealing from shoppers of his FTX cryptocurrency trade, stated Monday that prosecutors charged him with “alarming” haste and requested a US decide to drop 10 of 13 counts. him
In a case filed in Manhattan federal court docket, Bankman-Fried’s legal professionals stated the now-bankrupt FTX was removed from the one cryptocurrency firm to fail within the widespread market crash of 2022, and that prosecutors accused their shopper of a “rush to judgment.”
“As a substitute of ready for the standard civil and regulatory processes to resolve the state of affairs as standard, the federal government jumped in with each toes, inappropriately in search of to show these civil and regulatory points into federal crimes,” his legal professionals wrote.
Bankman-Fried, a 31-year-old former billionaire, rode the growth in bitcoin and different digital belongings to amass $26 billion.
He pleaded not responsible to fraud and conspiracy.
The trade collapsed after a collection of shopper exits after it was reported that its belongings had been combined with Alameda Analysis, Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency hedge fund.
Federal prosecutors in Manhattan stated Bankman-Fried misled FTX traders and lenders and stole billions of {dollars} in shopper funds to cowl losses at Alameda, purchase actual property and make political contributions by means of an unlawful straw donor scheme. Additionally they accused him of bribing Chinese language officers.
Earlier than the scheduled October 2 trial, his attorneys requested U.S. District Choose Lewis Kaplan to order prosecutors to show over any paperwork in FTX’s possession that might be useful to the protection, arguing that prosecutors are solely asking the corporate for info that might assist the case.
“FTX’s debtors have labored so extensively with the federal government and are so concerned within the investigation, evaluation and technique of the federal government’s case that they have to be thought of a part of the ‘prosecution group,'” his attorneys wrote.
Representatives of present FTX administration didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark. A spokesman for the US lawyer’s workplace in Manhattan declined to remark.
Prosecutors have till Could 29 to answer Bankman-Fried’s movement to dismiss, and Kaplan will hear arguments on June 15.
BETRAYAL
Bankman-Fried admitted that FTX had mismanaged threat, however denied stealing the funds and sought to distance himself from FTX’s day-to-day operations.
Three once-close associates — former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison, former FTX chief know-how officer Gary Wang and former FTX engineering chief Nishad Singh — have all pleaded responsible and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.
In pleading responsible, Singh admitted to creating political donations on his behalf that had been funded partially by transfers from Alameda.
However attorneys for Bankman-Fried stated Monday that Singh’s donation, which the indictment lists as CC-1 to their shopper, didn’t really violate election legal guidelines.
“The marketing campaign finance allegations as soon as once more reveal the results of the federal government’s rush to indict Mr. Bankman-Fried,” his legal professionals wrote.
Bankman-Fried has been largely confined to his dad and mom’ residence since his December arrest within the Bahamas, the place he lived and the place FTX was based mostly. He was extradited to america simply over every week after his arrest.
His dad and mom, who stay in Palo Alto, California, are regulation professors at Stanford College and signed his $250 million fortune.
Of their court docket papers Monday, his legal professionals stated the marketing campaign finance cost must be dismissed as a result of it was not included within the extradition warrant signed by the Bahamian overseas minister forward of Bankman-Fried’s extradition, and that different costs, together with a bribery cost, had been improperly introduced after of when it was issued.
