The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has decided to drop illegal campaign contributions charges levied against the former CEO of the FTX crypto exchange.
The US Attorney Damian Williams on Wednesday disclosed that the Bahamas, where Bankman-Fried was taken into custody, had notified the US government that the country would not extradite him based on this specific accusation.
“In line with our treaty obligations to the Bahamas, the government has no plans to proceed with the trial on the count of campaign contributions,” Williams stated in a letter to Judge Lewis Kaplan dated July 26.
Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas in December at the behest of the US government after the collapse of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX. Initially, he was extradited to the US facing eight charges, including a conspiracy to commit campaign finance violations.
As the case evolved, prosecutors added five more counts earlier this year, including securities fraud and conspiracy to violate anti-bribery laws, alleging a $40 million payment intended to influence Chinese officials. However, SBF legal team sought to have many of these charges dismissed. In accordance with the extradition treaty between the two countries, the Bahamas must give consent to any charges filed after extradition.
“After Mr. Bankman-Fried appropriately agreed to a simplified extradition procedure, the Bahamian government consented to release him to U.S. authorities and issued a warrant of surrender specifying that he be tried on seven of the eight counts in the Original Indictment –– but not the count relating to alleged campaign finance violations,” his lawyers clarified.
On June 15, Judge Kaplan separated those charges from the October trial after the government agreed to sever some of the post-extradition counts for a later trial. This decision was made “in light of the uncertainty” over whether The Bahamas consented to those additional charges.
On June 27, Judge Kaplan rejected Bankman-Fried’s motions to dismiss 10 of the counts, including allegations of campaign finance and conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
According to Williams’ letter on Wednesday, the uncertainty from the Bahamas has now been resolved. The government has received confirmation that The Bahamas did not plan to extradite Bankman-Fried on the campaign contributions count, he noted.
The notification arrived shortly after a hearing Wednesday regarding Bankman-Fried’s purported efforts to discredit witnesses, including former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison.
On Wednesday, Prosecutor Danielle Sassoon urged the judge to order Bankman-Fried’s detention before the scheduled October trial, citing concerns that “no set of release conditions can ensure the safety of the community.”
Sassoon’s request to jail Bankman-Fried came after he shared Ellison’s personal writings with a New York Times reporter. In a Google document provided to the NYT, Ellison expressed feeling unhappy and overwhelmed with her job at Alameda, and questioned her suitability for the role.
In light of the request, Judge Kaplan imposed stricter bail conditions on Bankman-Fried, including limiting his public communication.
Kaplan stated he will evaluate the possibility of imprisonment before the October trial. Both sides have been given until Aug. 3 to present their opinion on whether jailing is necessary for Bankman-Fried.
