Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) has firmly rejected allegations of witnesser tampering aft sharing extracts from his ex-girlfriend Caroline Ellison’s backstage diary with a newsman from the New York Times.
This denial comes arsenic national prosecutors question to revoke his bail, claiming the diary leak and different communications bespeak SBF has improperly attempted to power Ellison, a cardinal witnesser successful the high-profile FTX fraud case.
In a strongly-worded letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan filed connected Aug. 1, lawyers for SBF contend helium was acting wrong his Constitutional rights by offering commentary to the press. They asseverate his volition successful contacting the newsman was to respond to an existing communicative already successful advancement and support his estimation alternatively than improperly sway the trial.
The defence squad argues that the prosecution has taken assorted facts retired of context, similar SBF’s usage of encrypted messaging applications, to represent his actions unfairly negatively. The defence claims a disputed connection with a erstwhile FTX lawyer was genuinely astir assisting with bankruptcy proceedings, not stealth witnesser tampering arsenic alleged.
SBF’s counsel besides rejects the prosecution’s rationale for detaining their lawsuit arsenic highly flimsy, reliant connected assumptions, innuendo, and insufficient evidence. The missive states,
“The Government’s proffered factual ground to revoke Mr. Bankman-Fried’s bail is highly bladed and relies heavy connected assumptions, unsupported inferences, and innuendo.”
SBF’s ineligible squad posits the arguable NY Times nonfiction containing extracts from Ellison’s diary yet portrayed her sympathetically portion being unfavorable to SBF – the other of the prosecution’s assertion helium was seeking to intimidate her.
The defence points retired that revoking bail would marque preparing for the immensely analyzable FTX fraud proceedings practically intolerable for SBF, fixed the nonaccomplishment of machine and net entree needed to reappraisal galore millions of documents progressive successful the case. As an alternative, they suggest the slightest restrictive enactment is for the justice to enforce a gag bid restricting extrajudicial statements.
This latest back-and-forth implicit witnesser interaction and property commentary comes amid aggravated nationalist scrutiny arsenic the high-stakes FTX lawsuit progresses. With his proceedings accelerated approaching, debates astir the grade of SBF’s allowable actions portion connected bail look acceptable to persist.
For now, SBF remains connected bail nether strict conditions. However, the terrible quality of the transgression charges helium faces appears to beryllium spurring prosecutors to advocator for his detention earlier the proceedings commences. As some sides vigorously support their stance to the judge, the missive highlights however contentious the fraud proceedings could become.
The station Sam Bankman-Fried denies witnesser tampering allegations successful missive to judge appeared archetypal connected CryptoSlate.