On January 3, 2023, it was reported to the public that former FTX founder and CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried pled not guilty to leading a cryptocurrency scam that led to billions of dollars lost towards the end of 2022. After pleading not guilty, the presiding judge set a trial date for sometime in October in New York Federal Court. The defendant pleads not guilty to all eight conspiracy and fraud charges, and denies that the money he got through his scam was used to pay for expensive real estate and campaign donations.
After being extradited from the Bahamas. Judge Kaplan has set a trial date for October 2, 2022, and Bankman-Fried will remain under house arrest at his parents home in California until that date.
It was also released that the former billionaire faces numerous other charges such as civil actions from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
Manhattan United States Attorney Damian Williams had this to say about the case, “The Southern District of New York is working around the clock to respond to the implosion of FTX,” he said. “It is an all-hands-on-deck moment. We are launching the SDNY FTX Task Force to ensure that this urgent work continues, powered by all of SDNY’s resources and expertise, until justice is done.”
