The lawyers representing Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), former CEO of the now defund cryptocurrency platform and exchange FTX, have vehemently contended that the Department of Justice’s (DoJ) motion to revoke his bail rests on flimsy factual grounds which poses a potential infringement upon the 31-year old’s constitutional right to freedom of speech.
The argument comes after the DoJ prosecutors filed a written submission to the federal judge in a bid to revoke SBF’s bail bond. A move that was triggered after the 31-year-old crypto pioneer shared the private diaries of former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison with the New York Times (NYT).
As per the filing, SBF’s legal team told the federal judge that the Department of Justice’s motion lacks the necessary evidentiary basis to support their claims and therefore compromises his constitutional rights.
Furthermore, the attorneys mentioned in the filing that SBF’s sharing of Caroline’s private diaries is not witness tampering and it is not a violation of bail statute. Also, Bankman-Fried’s lawyers argued that detaining him would bring about serious First Amendment concerns.
Meanwhile, the DOJ claims SBF’s sharing of Ellison’s diary with the NYT goes beyond his right to defend himself publicly. “What the defendant may not do, and what he has now done, is seek to corruptly influence witnesses and interfere with a fair trial through attempted public harassment,” the filing reads.
SBF Accused of Funding Lawsuit With FTX Funds
Besides the push to revoke his bail bonds, a lawsuit was recently filed against the former billionaire, alleging that he has been utilizing company funds, amounting to about $10 million to finance his criminal defense.
Likewise, the lawsuit revealed that SBF and other executives abused their power and control over FTX’s funds to finance luxury lifestyles. In addition, they make political and charitable donations as well as speculative investments and other pet projects.
Also, the lawsuit alleges that Gabriel, SBF’s younger brother attempted to buy a sovereign island named Nauru which he plans to use to create a lab for experiments in human genetics and also create a post-apocalyptic haven for believers in effective altruism.
SBF’s Troubles Continue
Recall that SBF who is already facing fraud charges and mismanagement of funds was accused of skirting campaign laws by making straw donations early this year. Similarly, the disgraced CEO was accused of conspiring to pay a sum of approximately $40 million to Chinese government officials.
It was believed that the main reason for doing so was to convince the Chinese authorities to unfreeze Alameda accounts, which hold more than $1 billion in assets. Despite these bogus charges, SBF has pleaded not guilty to all of them.
