FTX CEO’s Appeal for Early Release has been Denied
- A three-judge panel has declined FTX founder SBF’s appeal for an early release from jail.
- The arguments presented by the crypto entrepreneur’s legal team were “unpersuasive,” said the judges.
- Circuit Judges John Walker Jr., Denny Chin, and William Nardini reviewed the appeal by Bankman-Fried’s lawyers.
- Judge Lewis Kaplan had “correctly determined” that Bankman-Fried’s speech amounted to witness tampering, said the order.
The appeal filed by the lawyers representing the founder of bankrupt crypto exchange FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, also known as SBF in the crypto space, for an early release of the former executive has been denied by a panel of three judges. It is important to note that a panel of three judges made the decision, calling the lawyers’ arguments “unpersuasive.”
The panel of three judges from the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied the FTX founder’s attempts for an early release from prison as per a September 21 order, which the legal team argued was largely due to First Amendment issues.
Circuit Judges John Walker Jr., Denny Chin, and William Nardini ruled that Judge Lewis Kaplan, the judge presiding over SBF’s case, had “correctly determined” that Bankman-Fried’s speech amounted to witness tampering.
The order added that “record shows that the district court thoroughly considered all of the relevant factors, including [SBF’s] course of conduct over time that had required the district court to repeatedly tighten the conditions of release,” while adding:
“It also shows that the district court contemplated a less restrictive alternative offered by [SBF] —an order limiting his communications with the press—but reasonably concluded this was not ‘a workable solution longer term.’”
As reported earlier by BitcoinWisdom, the FTX crypto exchange is currently undergoing major changes, and the creditors seek to restart the firm. The exchange recently claimed that SBF’s parents, Joe Bankman and Barbara Fried, helped cover up some of their son’s fraudulent schemes in a lawsuit.
Joe and Barbara “exploited their access and influence within the FTX enterprise to enrich themselves, directly and indirectly,” the lawsuit filed by the crypto exchange under new management stated.
On the other hand, the three-judge panel has decided to decline SBF’s appeal to come out of jail, and the order noted that:
“[T]he district court did not err in concluding that [SBF] had failed to rebut the presumption in favor of detention. We have reviewed [the defense team’s] additional arguments and find them unpersuasive.”
A crypto journalist with over 3 years of experience in DeFi, NFT, metaverse, etc. Parth has worked with major media outlets in the crypto and finance world and has gained experience and expertise in crypto culture after surviving bear and bull markets over the years.
