Justice Dept defends motion to bar SBF from accessing FTX, Alameda assets

United States prosecutors successful the transgression lawsuit against erstwhile FTX main enforcement serviceman Sam Bankman-Fried person released substance and email messages from SBF to existent CEO John Ray.

In tribunal documents for the Southern District of New York released connected Jan. 30, the Justice Department responded to a question from Bankman-Fried’s ineligible squad attempting to region immoderate of the projected modifications for his bail conditions, which included barring interaction with erstwhile and existent FTX employees. According to prosecutors, SBF attempted to interaction some existent FTX CEO John Ray and FTX US wide counsel Ryne Miller.

In an email to Ray connected Jan. 2, Bankman-Fried said helium hadn’t gotten disconnected “on the close foot” and offered to conscionable the FTX CEO successful idiosyncratic successful New York City — helium was allowed to permission his parents’ California location to appear successful court and participate his not-guilty plea. The connection followed 1 from Dec. 30, successful which SBF cited a Cointelegraph report successful an effort to code the presumption of funds tied to Alameda wallets:

“I myself can’t entree the funds, but I fishy that your squad apt has the quality to determination and safeguard these funds [...] I would beryllium blessed to speech astir the ways you apt are capable to entree them if helpful.”

Bankman-Fried claimed successful his Jan. 12 “pre-mortem overview” of FTX’s illness that instrumentality steadfast Sullivan & Crowell and the FTX US wide counsel pressured him into naming Ray arsenic his successor. Ray antecedently responded to claims from SBF regarding FTX arsenic the erstwhile CEO having “no ongoing role” astatine the steadfast oregon its subsidiaries and “does not talk connected their behalf”.

Related: SBF allegedly utilized FTX wealth to put $400M successful obscure VC firm

Filings from Jan. 27 showed Bankman-Fried attempted to scope retired to Miller, allegedly to “influence” his grounds successful the transgression case. This prompted prosecutors to record a motion, amending SBF’s bail conditions to forestall interaction with FTX employees and utilizing encrypted messaging applications similar Signal. The Jan. 30 filing included a projected prohibition connected SBF “accessing oregon transferring immoderate FTX oregon Alameda assets oregon cryptocurrency”.

Bankruptcy proceedings for FTX are moving guardant successful the District of Delaware, portion SBF’s transgression proceedings is scheduled to statesman successful October.