Photo by Wesley Tingey on Unsplash
Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has filed an appeal asking for a dismissal of his fraud conviction. The 102-page filing submitted by his attorneys argues that the earlier judgment was rushed, which denied him the opportunity to properly defend himself. In addition to overturning the conviction, the appeal is also seeking a reassignment of the case to a new judge for a retrial.
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According to SBF’s lawyers, the conviction handed to the ex-crypto billionaire was too harsh. They described it as a “draconian quarter-century sentence” unbefitting of him since the former founder is a non-violent first-time offender. Alexandra Shapiro, who joined SBF’s team of attorneys after the conviction, believes Bankman-Fried was already assumed guilty early in the case.
“Sam Bankman-Fried was never presumed innocent. He was presumed guilty – before he was even charged. He was presumed guilty by the media. He was presumed guilty by the FTX debtor estate and its lawyers. He was presumed guilty by federal prosecutors eager for quick headlines. And he was presumed guilty by the judge who presided over his trial,” SBF’s attorneys wrote.
According to Shapiro, the jury only saw “half the picture.” Shapiro argued that the court considered SBF’s intent to steal funds as “immaterial.” Unfortunately, this meant that the defense could not present evidence that both FTX and Alameda Research, a crypto trading firm also co-founded by SBF, were “solvent.” Shapiro believes this was unfair treatment because the court allowed the government to present evidence of loss but did not allow SBF to prove solvency.
Last November, after a four-hour deliberation, Bankman-Fried was found guilty of seven charges, including one count of securities fraud, one count of money laundering conspiracy, one count of commodities fraud conspiracy, two counts of wire fraud conspiracy, and two counts of wire fraud.
In the FTX case, three of SBF’s advisers pleaded guilty to fraud and testified against him. Caroline Ellison, who was the chief executive of Alameda, and SBF’s ex-girlfriend, will be sentenced on September 24. Her layers are now seeking leniency, asking that she gets no jail time.
In a memo recently submitted to the court, her lawyers say that her “extraordinarily impactful” cooperation during the investigations should help get her an easier sentence. According to the memo, she is not a threat to public safety, poses no risk of recidivism, and deeply regrets her role in the fraud case. The lawyers wrote that Ellison would “carry shame and remorse to her grave.”
