Sam Bankman-Fried Expected to Enter Plea in FTX Fraud Case

(CTN News) – Sam Bankman-Fried is scheduled to plea next week in response to allegations that he deceived investors and stole billions of dollars from customers at his bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency exchange.

According to court papers released on Wednesday, the 30-year-old is scheduled to be arraigned in Manhattan federal court on the afternoon of January 3, 2023, before U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan.

After the first judge withdrew because her husband’s law company had counseled FTX before its collapse, Kaplan was appointed to the case on Tuesday.

Authorities claim that Sam Bankman-Fried committed a multi-year “fraud of epic proportions” by using client funds to finance his Alameda Research hedge fund, purchase real estate, and give to political campaigns.

Sam Bankman-Fried faces two charges of wire fraud and six counts of conspiracy.

Sam Bankman-Fried is accused of two charges of wire fraud and six counts of conspiracy, including conspiring to launder money and violate campaign finance laws; if found guilty, she faces a lengthy prison sentence.

Sam Bankman-Fried said there had been poor risk management at FTX before his arrest on December 12 but insisted he did not think he was legally responsible.

Former Alameda CEO Caroline Ellison and former FTX Chief Technology Officer Gary Wang, two of his allies, have pled guilty to their involvement in the demise of FTX and agreed to assist authorities.

Requests for a response from a Sam Bankman-Fried attorney were not immediately returned.

Sam Bankman-Fried was allowed to reside with his parents in Palo Alto, California, where they are Stanford Law School professors, and was freed on a $250 million bail on December 22. He is being watched electronically.

On November 11, FTX requested bankruptcy protection. On December 13, the exchange’s new CEO, John Ray, testified before Congress that it lost $8 billion in client funds while being managed by “grossly untrained, non-sophisticated employees.”

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