U.S. Prosecutors Ask Judge To Revoke FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s Bail

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  • Federal prosecutors in the United States want Sam Bankman-Fried to be jailed ahead of the FTX trial. 
  • The prosecutors argued that the court should reverse Bankman-Fried’s pre-trial release for the safety of the community. 
  • The FTX founder previously came under fire for providing personal writings of a trial witness to the New York Times. 

The United States Department of Justice is seeking the detention of Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced founder of Bahamas-based bankrupt crypto exchange FTX. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have asked the judge overseeing his fraud case to revoke Bankman-Fried’s bail and jail him as he waits for his trial to begin in October. 

Prosecutors: Sam Bankman-Fried Not Safe For The Community

Federal prosecutor Danielle Sassoon told U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan during a hearing today that no bail conditions for Sam Bankman-Fried could ensure the safety of the community, Reuters reported. The Justice Department wants the FTX founder’s house arrest to be reversed and put him behind bars ahead of his trial, which is scheduled to begin on October 2, 2023. 

The prosecutors’ request for Sam Bankman-Fried’s detention comes less than a week after he was accused of witness tampering. Prosecutors in New York wrote to Judge Kaplan after the FTX founder shared the private writings of Caroline Ellison with the New York Times. 

Caroline Ellison served as the Chief Executive of FTX’s sister firm Alameda Research and was also Bankman-Fried’s romantic partner. Ellison, who was a part of Bankman-Fried’s inner circle, took a plea deal earlier this year and is expected to testify against him. 

Following the NYT controversy, federal prosecutors sought a gag order from the court to prevent SBF from making public statements that could have undue influence on trial witnesses or interfere with the ongoing case. Bankman-Fried agreed to the gag order on the condition that it applies to prosecutors and other parties associated with the lawsuit, including FTX’s current CEO John Ray III. 

This isn’t the first time that Sam Bankman-Fried had a run-in with prosecutors over his actions. Earlier this year, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Damian Williams, asked Judge Kaplan to limit SBF’s access to internet-enabled devices after he tried to contact a former FTX employee regarding the ongoing lawsuit. 

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