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During a court appearance on Tuesday, Sam Bankman-Fried reaffirmed his not-guilty plea in relation to fraud and money laundering charges connected to the downfall of his cryptocurrency enterprise, FTX, the previous year.
In the Southern District of New York courthouse, the FTX founder was formally presented with the charges contained in a new indictment. The indictment alleges that he utilized customer funds for various purposes, including personal real estate acquisitions and political contributions. These charges are an expansion of the original indictment filed in December, involving the inclusion of a campaign finance charge alongside other accusations. This adjustment was made due to the prosecution’s constraints in explicitly bringing the charge, influenced by treaty obligations with the Bahamas.
Magistrate Judge Sarah Neburn presided over the proceedings, methodically enumerating each charge and inquiring whether Bankman-Fried wished for her to read the entire indictment aloud. Responding with a concise “no,” he was then asked about his plea.
In his inaugural court appearance following the recent revocation of his bail earlier this month, Bankman-Fried emerged attired in a tan uniform. He directed a fleeting smile at his mother, Barbara Fried, among the spectators prior to hastening towards his legal team’s table. An accompanying U.S. Marshal escorted him. Notably absent from this arraignment was his father, Joseph Bankman, in contrast to Bankman-Fried’s previous hearing on August 11.
In the moments preceding the commencement of the arraignment, Bankman-Fried engaged in a substantive dialogue with his legal representatives.
The Tuesday arraignment transpired amidst defense team entreaties for Bankman-Fried to have regular interactions with his legal counsel and access to internet-enabled laptops at the U.S. Attorney’s office on each weekday. Judge Lewis Kaplan, presiding over the case, ruled on Monday that Bankman-Fried could confer with his attorneys at the office until 3:00 p.m. EDT on the same day. However, the judge has yet to issue a ruling on the broader request.
During Tuesday’s hearing, one of Bankman-Fried’s attorneys, Christian Everdell, reiterated the concern, arguing that the FTX founder’s Sixth Amendment rights were being violated. Everdell stated that since his detention, Bankman-Fried has been denied access to the documents provided during the discovery phase.
Everdell asserted that to effectively review the extensive volume of documents generated during the discovery process, Bankman-Fried necessitates the use of internet-enabled laptops. He emphasized, “There is no way for him to effectively communicate his work product and his analyses to us. He needs to be performing analyses.”
Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Kudla acknowledged that this matter had already been discussed in a previous briefing before Judge Kaplan, who had rejected the request.
The conditions at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, where Bankman-Fried has been held since August 11, took center stage in the discourse, underlined by Bankman-Fried’s second attorney, Mark Cohen.
Cohen lamented the absence of vegan options at the prison, asserting that Bankman-Fried was adhering to his principles by resorting to a diet of bread and water.
Furthermore, Cohen pointed out the prison’s failure to provide Bankman-Fried with Adderall, a commonly prescribed drug for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Cohen also indicated that Bankman-Fried’s supply of EMSAM, an antidepressant, was depleting, as reported by his legal representative.
Both attorneys contended that the confluence of inadequate internet access and the lack of appropriate nourishment and medication could impede Bankman-Fried’s capacity to mount a robust defense against a particularly intricate set of charges, as characterized by Cohen.
Judge Netburn acknowledged these concerns, expressing her intent to address both matters following the adjournment of the hearing. She aimed to resolve these issues by the conclusion of the day’s proceedings.
On their part, prosecutors petitioned the court to mandate that Bankman-Fried’s defense team disclose more details regarding his proposed “advice-of-counsel” defense. This disclosure should encompass the nature of the counsel’s advice. The judge set a deadline of Wednesday for the defense to provide this additional information.
Bankman-Fried’s trial is scheduled to commence in early October. Recently, prosecutors and defense attorneys submitted proposed jury instructions, delineating their perspectives on how the judge should elucidate the charges and allegations to the jurors.
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