by • Sam Bankman-Fried’s proposed bail conditions were judged to be too lenient by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan on March 10th.
• The restrictions proposed by Kaplan included no access to smartphones, tablets, computers or video game platforms with chat and voice communication capabilities.
• Judge Kaplan expressed his concern that Bankman-Fried could find ways to evade the restrictions and covertly communicate with others electronically.
Judge Expresses Concern Over Proposed Bail Conditions For Sam Bankman-Fried
On March 10th, U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan expressed concerns over the proposed bail conditions for former FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried. The proposal said that Bankman-Fried’s communication should be limited to “a flip phone or other non-smartphone with either no internet capabilities or internet capabilities disabled.” However, at the hearing Judge Kaplan suggested that Bankman-Fried was “inventive” and could find ways to evade the restrictions and covertly communicate with others electronically.
Bankman-Fried Facing Fraud Trial in October
Bankman-Fried is currently fighting to avoid jail until his scheduled fraud trial on Oct 2nd. Prosecutors have charged him with stealing billions of dollars in FTX customer funds, making tens of millions of dollars in illegal political donations, and tampering with witnesses.
Previous Allegations Against Bankman-Fried
Bankman-Fried’s $250 million bail has been subject to scrutiny since Feb 9th following revelations that he had attempted to contact possible witnesses in his case as well as being temporarily prohibited from using a VPN after prosecutors alleged he had utilized it twice on Jan 29th & Feb 12th respectively.
Lawyer Assures Court Of Working With Prosecutors On New Proposal
Christian Everdell, Bankman Fried’s lawyer assured the court that he would work with prosecutors on a new proposal to address the judge’s concerns regarding the case so as to ensure proper restrictions are put in place for Bankman Fried’s communications going forward .
Conclusion
At this time it remains unclear what further changes will be made to Sam Bankman Fried’s bail conditions but one thing is certain — Judge Lewis Kaplan will not let him off easily and will ensure proper precautions are taken if need be before allowing him out on bail before his trial in October 2023
