By James Davis
On Tuesday, Court adjusted former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s bond agreement. Lewis Kaplan, the judge assigned the Bankman-Fried case, added a new condition to the agreement prohibiting the former billionaire from accessing or transferring funds linked to Alameda Research or FTX.
Assistant United States Attorney Danielle Sassoon made this request on behalf of the government. The amendment stems from recent fund transfers involving Alameda-linked wallets. The transfers happened a few days after the court granted Bankman-Fried release on bail.
The FTX ex-boss bond agreement’s conditions include house arrest and electronic monitoring. In addition, Bankman-Fried’s parents approved their California home as collateral, where he is currently staying.
FTX Ex-CEO Pleads Not Guilty to All Charges
At the court proceeding, the former FTX CEO pleaded not guilty to the eight charges he is facing, including money laundering and wire fraud. Judge Kaplan set October 2, 2022, as the trial date for Bankman-Fried.
Last week, after Blockchain observers reported that Alameda Research had initiated fund transfers, the firm’s founder tweeted for the first time since his arrest a few weeks ago, denying the allegation that he was involved in the activity. He claimed that he did not have access to the funds anymore.
At Bankman-Fried arraignment yesterday, Mark Cohen, one of the attorneys representing the FTX ex-boss, told the court that his client never made any transfers. In addition, Cohen cited that the government had reached out earlier regarding the issue.
Assistant United States Attorney Tells Court not to Trust SBF’s Statements
In proposing the amendment to the bond agreement, Sassoon told the judge that federal prosecutors were uncertain whether Bankman-Fried was the mastermind of the fund transfers. However, the assistant United States attorney added that the court must not trust Bankman-Fried’s denial claims.
Sassoon argued that the former billionaire had access to the funds at one point, and based on his previous false statements, it might have been him. Sassoon quoted a Bankman-Fried’s tweet days before his fallen exchange filed for bankruptcy. In the tweet, the FTX ex-CEO suggested that the firm was doing fine.