New York
CNN
—
A federal judge issued a secret order on former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, limiting his ability to speak publicly about his case, after U.S. prosecutors asked a federal judge to jail him on charges of witness tampering.
Prosecutors accused Bankman-Fried of leaking personal writings of his ex-girlfriend and business partner to The New York Times. They said last week that Bankman-Fried, 31, had attempted to discredit their star witness, Caroline Ellison, who is expected to testify against him at his trial in October.
At a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Leantanis Kaplan on Wednesday, Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon cited multiple instances of the FTX founder actively communicating with the media and claiming he was a source for multiple stories – part of an “ongoing campaign with the Press that has now crossed a line,” she said.
Sassoon cited the defendant’s “history of obstruction in the form of setting up automatic deletion” in communications related to FTX and using a VPN to reverse monitoring.
The prosecution ” gave a lot of confidence to the defendant “and now believes that” it is not possible to draw up a set of adequate conditions of release ” to ensure the safety of the community.
Bankman-Fried’s lead lawyer, Mark Cohen, suggested the defense had not been given enough time by prosecutors about the request to imprison him, saying the defense found out about the change “one minute before the court.”
Cohen also noted the unusually large volume of intelligence documents – 32 million pages so far, he said. “This is a complex case involving complex financial transactions,” making it “almost impossible to work with our client if he were to be remanded in custody,” he said.
Judge Kaplan said he would issue a temporary silence order while giving both sides time to prepare more formal presentations before ruling on the government’s pre-trial detention proposal.
“I am fully aware of the issues of the document and the need for access by the defendant. Of course, I am very aware of his First Amendment rights. I am very aware of the government’s interest in this matter, which I take very seriously,” Kaplan said. “Mr. Bankman-Fried, you better take it seriously.”
The prosecution said it would present its argument by Friday, and the defense would make its case by August 1. Bankman-Fried is out of jail.
At an earlier bail hearing, Kaplan alluded to the possibility of revoking Bankman-Fried’s bail agreement and forcing him to await trial in prison. But he has also extended his leniency in Bankman-Fried’s use of electronic devices, citing the complexity of his case.
Cohen reiterated Bankman-Fried’s constitutional right to speak to the press and said he did not violate the conditions of his bail.
“The government is claiming that it never speaks to the media about this case,” he said.
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers previously said they would comply with an order of silence, but asked that it apply equally to all parties, including “the government and all potential witnesses in this case.”
Wednesday’s hearing marks yet another setback before the trial for Bankman-Fried, who was released on a $ 250 million bail after his arrest in December. He is preparing for trial under house arrest at his parents ‘ home in Palo Alto, California.
In February, Judge Kaplan tightened restrictions on bankman-Fried’s freedom after prosecutors flagged a direct message Bankman-Fried sent to a former FTX employee, raising concerns about potential witness manipulation.
Since his arrest, Bankman-Fried has ignored standard legal advice to remain silent on the eve of trial, frequently speaking to the media and blogging about his experience.
His lawyers have postponed prosecutors ‘ allegations of witness tampering. Citing a” toxic “media environment that has been” almost uniformly “negative, Bankman-Fried” has the right to challenge that public narrative by making fair comments in the media,” his lawyers wrote.
Bankman-Fried’s lawyers say the New York Times article had been “under way for months” and that the journalist already had other sources.
In the article, The Times quotes from private diary entries that Ellison wrote in Google Docs. The documents reportedly detail her” unhappy and overwhelmed ” emotional state as CEO of Alameda Research, FTX’s crypto hedge fund. The writings also reportedly expressed her doubts about her ability to make decisions and run the business effectively.
Ellison, who is 28, pleaded guilty in December to multiple counts of conspiracy and fraud for her role in a scheme that led to the collapse of FTX.
Bankman-Fried, the founder of Alameda and FTX, has pleaded not guilty to eight federal charges of fraud and conspiracy.
The trial date is set for October 2.
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