US Judge Denies Bankman-Fried’s Motion to Dismiss Charges
- Former FTX executives have pleaded guilty and implicated Bankman-Fried as part of an alleged deal with US prosecutors.
- Bankman-Fried’s trial is scheduled to commence in October this year.
- FTX filed for bankruptcy in November after facing a liquidity problem.
Sam Bankman-Fried, the crypto businessman and FTX founder accused of planning a multibillion-dollar scam, was unsuccessful in getting part of his criminal charges dismissed on Tuesday.
Judge Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York denied the 31-year-old’s claims, stating in his decision that Bankman-Fried’s claims “are either moot or without merit.” Today’s decision paves the way for the trial of the former crypto billionaire later this year.
Last month, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers filed motions requesting the judge overseeing the case throw out 10 of the 13 criminal charges filed by US prosecutors, leaving just conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit commodities fraud.
Judge Kaplan rejected Bankman-Fried’s motions using precedent from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. The judge wrote in his decision,
The Second Circuit has deemed dismissal an ‘extreme sanction’ that has been upheld ‘only in very limited and extreme circumstances and should be ‘reserved for the truly extreme cases,’ ‘especially where serious criminal conduct is involved.
Today’s decision implies that Bankman-Fried will be prosecuted for the eight counts that were initially brought against him in December 2022, the four that were added in February this year, and a final charge that accuses the 31-year-old of bribing a Chinese government official.
However, Judge Kaplan ruled that the other five counts that were added after Bankman-Fried’s extradition from the Bahamas will be handled in a different trial that will take place in March 2024.
Bankman-Fried has maintained a not-guilty plea to all 13 charges and faces the possibility of a life behind bars if found guilty on all charges.
The former FTX CEO is accused by federal prosecutors of masterminding one of the largest financial frauds in US history. Prosecutors claim that SBF, as he is fondly called, defrauded investors and used funds taken from FTX users to buy luxury real estate and provide substantial sums to political campaigns.
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