Cryptocurrency exchange FTX, once valued at $32 billion, filed for bankruptcy protection in November as it was not able to pay back depositors
Lawyers for FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried denied prosecutors’ claims that his conversations with a New York Times (NYT) reporter tantamount to witness tampering but consented to accept a gag order, they said in a letter to the judge in the criminal fraud case.
The letter, released on Sunday, came after prosecutors sought to bar SBF and allies from making public statements that could hamper the case.
Cryptocurrency exchange FTX, once valued at $32 billion, filed for bankruptcy protection in November last year as it was not able to pay back depositors. The FTX founder has pleaded not guilty to fraud.
In the letter, SBF’s attorney confirmed he had discussed and provided personal documents to the NYT that included documents written by a former colleague, Caroline Ellison, who has collaborated with the U.S. government on the case.
SBF did not breach the protective order in this case, nor did he infringe his bail conditions, nor did he breach any law or rule governing his conduct, SBF’s lawyer Mark Cohen stated in the letter.
An article published by NYT titled “Inside the Private Writings of Caroline Ellison, Star Witness in the FTX Case” cited extracts from Ellison’s personal Google documents from before the failure of FTX in which she stated about being “pretty unhappy and overwhelmed” with her job and feeling “hurt/rejected” from her breakup with SBF.
Ellison led SBF’s Alameda Research hedge fund and has pleaded guilty to deceiving investors and consented to cooperating with prosecutors. In December last year, the FTX founder said he and Ellison had been in a relationship but did not provide further details.
