Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, could experience a postponement in his criminal trial due to his lawyers requesting additional time to prepare his defense. The legal team of Bankman-Fried wrote a letter to United States District Judge Lewis Kaplan saying they had yet to receive significant evidence.
They also claimed new allegations were made against their client in late February. We sent the letter addressing the ongoing legal case against Bankman-Fried. However, the lawyers clarified that they are not currently requesting a change in the trial date.
The letter, which was sent on Mar 8, covered some topics that SBF’s attorneys would like to talk about at a conference that will take place on Mar 10. The letter raises concerns, such as SBF’s access to the FTX transactional database, bail guidelines, the motions’ schedule, and the state of the discovery process.
The attorneys asked that the list of websites that SBF can view include Cohen & Gresser’s ShareFile website. They added that he has yet to be able to start looking through the Amazon Database. He can’t use a VPN per bail terms, so it’s crucial for the discovery process.
The defense team has created a specialized laptop that meets the necessary security protocols for the FTX Debtors. We have prepared to send it to SBF for some time. As per the current schedule for motions, the defense must submit their pretrial motions by April 3, the Government must respond by April 24, and the defense team must reply by May 8.
FTX Founder Faces More Legal Trouble With New Charges
The Government linked SBF to FTX and changed the charges against them, adding fraud charges related to derivative trading and securities fraud. They also included an accusation of participating in unlicensed money transmission.
The defense team stated they had not received essential discovery materials, including search warrant returns from thirty Google accounts and data from four electronic devices.
SBF’s attorneys have asked for a postponement in the motions schedule due to the superseding indictment and significant unfinished discovery. The defense must submit pretrial motions by May 1, while the Government’s response is due May 22. However, the defense must respond to the government by June 5.
The defense may have to request a postponement of the trial scheduled for Oct 2, 2023. This would be based on the amount and timing of additional discovery materials.
However, much of the material is still pending, and SBF’s attorneys have asked for more time to prepare his defense. In a forthcoming conference, they brought up some points they would like to discuss with the Court.
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