Sam Bankman-Fried: FTX founder and ‘crypto king’ has bail revoked for alleged witness tampering

Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has had his $250m (£197m) bail revoked and has been despatched to jail after alleged witness tampering.

US District Judge Lewis Kaplan made the choice after prosecutors mentioned Bankman-Fried had tried to harass a key witness in his fraud case final month.

The 31-year-old was charged with defrauding buyers within the US after he allegedly stole billions of {dollars} – spending tens of thousands and thousands on political donations. He has pleaded not responsible.

Mr Kaplan mentioned he had concluded there was possible trigger to consider Bankman-Fried had tried to “tamper with witnesses at least twice” since he was arrested in December.

Bankman-Fried was led out of the listening to in a federal court docket in Manhattan in handcuffs by members of the US Marshals Service after eradicating his shoelaces, jacket and tie and emptying his pockets.

The former billionaire has been underneath home arrest at his dad and mom’ dwelling in California, since he was extradited from the Bahamas.

The $250m bail package deal severely restricted his web and telephone utilization, however two weeks in the past prosecutors demanded he be despatched to jail, alleging he violated these guidelines by giving The New York Times the non-public writings of a key witness, Caroline Ellison, his ex-girlfriend and former CEO of Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency buying and selling hedge fund that was one among his companies.

Prosecutors argued he was making an attempt to sully her fame and affect potential jurors who could also be summoned for his trial in October.

In December Ellison pleaded responsible to legal prices carrying a possible penalty of 110 years in jail – she has agreed to testify towards Bankman-Fried as a part of a deal that would result in a extra lenient sentence.

Read extra:
The rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried

Bankman-Fried’s attorneys argue he was making an attempt to guard his fame

Bankman-Fried’s attorneys argued he shouldn’t be jailed for making an attempt to guard his fame towards a barrage of unfavourable information tales and mentioned he had a proper to talk to the press.

They mentioned prosecutors had been making an attempt to get him locked up by providing proof consisting of “innuendo, speculation, and scant facts.”

Since prosecutors made their detention request Mr Kapham imposed a gag order barring public feedback by individuals taking part within the trial, together with Bankman-Fried.