U.S. Government Appeals Against SBF's Request for Temporary Release Ahead of Fraud Trials
Summary:
The U.S. government has written to Judge Lewis Kaplan objecting to Sam Bankman-Fried's (SBF) request for temporary release ahead of his October 3rd trial. The government maintains that the risk associated with the release, given SBF's past conduct, outweighs his claims of not being able to participate meaningfully in his defense. The letter also highlighted two previous similar instances that were denied by the court. SBF's trial will address seven counts of fraud from his time at FTX and Alameda Research and he has already pled not guilty to all charges.
On September 27, the U.S. government expressed its objection to temporary release request put forth by Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) and his attorneys, ahead of his October 3rd trial, in a letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan. The adjudicator is slated to consider input from both parties later today. In its documentation, the government urged Kaplan to reject SBF's plea which was made on September 25. The state outlined that the accused's inability to effectively contribute to his own defense, hence the need for temporary release, does not supersede the risk that such conditions of release presents given his past record, which involves a threat to society or risk of absconding. It added that the newly proposed motion encapsulates generalized allegations, and pointed out two past occasions when the court turned down similar proposals. On September 12, the first of these denials occurred when SBF's plea for immediate release pending trial was turned down due to several reasons, including having extensive exposure to the evidence against him electronically for seven and a half months prior to revoking of his bail just before the trial, and failing to provide specifics about materials that he claims he can't access, among others. The other denial took place on September 21 when a three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals dismissed SBF's release request, describing the arguments as unconvincing. During this subsequent denial, the Court of Appeals reinforced its belief that the accused was trying to interfere with two witnesses with intent to tamper, contravening the 18 U.S.C. § 1512(b), thereby influencing them unlawfully. Using this as their basis, the government concurred that the recent motion suffers identical shortcomings as the initial one. SBF's criminal trial, scheduled for October 3 in New York City, encompasses seven counts of fraud that transpired during his tenure at FTX and Alameda Research. He's also due for a separate trial in March 2024 for an additional five counts. SBF has thus far denied all the charges laid against him.
Published At
9/28/2023 12:29:20 PM
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