Sam Bankman-Fried is intimidating witnesses and have to be jailed, prosecutors say

Sam Bankman-Fried have to be jailed pending his October fraud trial over the collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency trade he based as a result of he’s attempting to intimidate witnesses and affect their testimony, prosecutors mentioned Friday.

Bankman-Fried, a former billionaire, has lived primarily underneath home arrest at his mother and father’ Palo Alto, California, residence since his December 2022 extradition from the Bahamas.

His bail, which features a $250 million bond, turned a difficulty after the New York Occasions on July 20 printed an article containing excerpts from his former romantic partner Caroline Ellison’s personal Google documents previous to FTX’s collapse.

Bankman-Fried, 31, acknowledged sharing the paperwork with a Occasions reporter. The US Legal professional’s workplace in Manhattan mentioned that crossed the road, and that Bankman-Fried’s efforts to intimidate witnesses amounted to witness tampering.

“The defendant actually has the proper to talk and defend himself to the press,” prosecutors mentioned in a letter to US District Decide Lewis Kaplan.

“What the defendant could not do, and what he has now carried out repeatedly, is search to corruptly affect witnesses and intervene with a good trial by way of tried public harassment and shaming,” prosecutors added.

A spokesperson for Bankman-Fried declined to remark. His attorneys have till Aug. 1 to answer the federal government’s letter.

Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to stealing billions of dollars in FTX buyer funds to plug losses at his Alameda Analysis hedge fund, the place Ellison was chief govt.

Prosecutors first made their shock request to detain Bankman-Fried earlier than his Oct. 2 trial at a Wednesday listening to, the place Kaplan barred Bankman-Fried from discussing the case.

His lawyer mentioned at Wednesday’s listening to that Bankman-Fried’s communications with journalists had been merely a method to guard his popularity.

Prosecutors had in January accused Bankman-Fried of searching for to affect the testimony of an FTX lawyer.

In writings cited by the Occasions, Ellison described being “sad and overwhelmed” together with her job and feeling “damage/rejected” from her breakup with Bankman-Fried.

Ellison pleaded responsible to fraud costs and is anticipated to testify in opposition to Bankman-Fried at trial.

She mentioned in court docket final December that Bankman-Fried and different FTX executives acquired billions of {dollars} in hidden loans from Alameda.

Two former FTX executives, Gary Wang and Nishad Singh, have additionally pleaded responsible over FTX’s collapse and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors.