Sam Bankman-Fried pleads not guilty to bribery, charges from superseding indictment
The former FTX CEO’s legal team argued that, although SBF had entered a not-guilty plea, he did not acknowledge the new charges, which included bribing a Chinese government official.
Lawyers for former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried have entered a not-guilty plea for five additional charges since his December 2022 arraignment, including allegations of bribery.
According to multiple reports, Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty in United States District Court for the Southern District of New York to four charges added as part of a superseding indictment in February, and one charge added on March 28 related to the former CEO allegedly bribing a Chinese government official. Other charges include conspiracy counts related to fraud as well as those for wire fraud and securities fraud during his time at FTX.
Mark Cohen, the attorney representing Bankman-Fried in the criminal case, reportedly argued that though SBF had entered a not guilty plea, there was no acknowledgement that the court had the authority to bring the charges against him. The latest charge alleged that SBF was involved in transferring “at least approximately $40 million in cryptocurrency intended for the benefit of one or more Chinese government officials” intended to facilitate transactions tied to Alameda Research.
SBF arriving to court to be arraigned on 5 new charges since his original indictment. Hearing starts at 11a pic.twitter.com/x8HBsWVbFv
— Dawn Giel (@DawnGiel) March 30, 2023
Related: Sam Bankman-Fried is paying for legal defense using previously gifted funds from Alameda: Report
Bankman-Fried has been free on bail since being turned over to U.S. custody from the Bahamas in December, largely confined to his parents’ California home. A federal judge recently amended his bail conditions to prohibit the use of any smartphone with internet access. Bankruptcy proceedings for FTX are also currently underway in the District of Delaware.
Magazine: SBF legal fees, BTC market cap flips Meta and USDC climbs back to $1: Hodler’s Digest, March 12-18