Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers have invested in assets held by his former company, FTX, and to cryptocurrencies He said there was no evidence that he was previously responsible for the unauthorized transactions allegedly carried out by Bankman-Fried.
Bankman-Fried, who resigned as CEO of FTX on November 11, 2022, when the crypto exchange filed for bankruptcy, is now on bail from the lawsuit, which he pleads not guilty and faces charges such as fraud and money laundering.
Sam Bankman-Fried Denied Access to FTX’s Cryptocurrency Assets As Part of Bail Settlement
As part of the bail conditions, Bankman-Fried was banned from accessing cryptocurrencies held by FTX and its trading arm, Alameda Research, after the government brought attention to illegal transfers from Alameda wallets. This ban also covers cryptocurrencies purchased with FTX or Alameda funds.
“It has been nearly three weeks since the first preliminary hearing, and we assume that the authorities’ investigation has confirmed what Bankman-Fried has been saying all along, namely that he did not access or transfer these assets,” Bankman-Fried’s attorney, Mark Cohen, wrote in a letter dated January 28.
“We believe that the bail requirement imposed at the conference should be lifted, given that the sole basis for asserting this requirement is not supported in any way,” Cohen wrote in a letter to New York Southern District judge Lewis Kaplan.
In a January 27 filing, the U.S. Department of Justice requested a communications ban as an additional bail condition, saying Bankman-Fried was trying to contact Ryne Miller, FTX’s General Counsel, and a potential witness in the case.
Cohen’s response generally approves of the restriction, but says he still needs access to some of his former employees, including Bankman-Fried’s therapist, George Lerner.
“Requiring Bankman-Fried to include his lawyer in every communication he has with a former or current FTX employee would unnecessarily strain his resources and impair his ability to defend this case. Many of these people are friends of Bankman-Fried. A general restriction on contact with these individuals would remove an important source of personal support.” said.
*Not investment advice.
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