FTX founder Bankman-Fried objects to tighter bail

Sam Bankman-attorneys Fried's on Saturday pleaded with a U.S. judge not to restrict the indicted FTX cryptocurrency executive's ability to contact former coworkers as a condition of his release on bail, claiming that prosecutors "sandbagged" the procedure to cast their client in the "worst possible light."

The attorneys were reacting to a Friday night request from federal prosecutors that Bankman-Fried not be permitted to speak with the majority of employees of FTX or his Alameda Research hedge fund without attorneys present, or use Signal or Slack, encrypted messaging apps that might delete messages automatically.

Since pleading not guilty to accusations of fraud in the theft of billions of dollars from the now-bankrupt FTX, Bankman-Fried, 30, has been free on a $250 million bail.

In order to avoid witness tampering and other forms of obstruction of justice, the prosecution claimed that their request was in reaction to Bankman-recent Fried's attempt to get in touch with the general counsel of an FTX affiliate, a prospective witness against him.

However, Bankman-attorneys Fried's said in a letter to U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan that prosecutors unexpectedly imposed the "overbroad" bail restrictions without disclosing that the two parties had been debating bond over the previous week.

Bankman Fried's claimed that the government "sandbagged the process" by sending this letter at 6:00 p.m. on Friday night rather than waiting for a response from the defense. According to the government, the best approach to achieve the desired result is via a one-sided presentation that is slanted to portray our client in the worst possible light.

Additionally, the attorneys for Bankman-Fried said that their client's attempts to get in touch with the general counsel and John Ray, who was appointed as FTX's CEO during the bankruptcy, were intended to "give help" and not to meddle.

A Manhattan-based spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Damian Williams refused to comment.

The attorneys for Bankman-Fried suggested that their client be permitted to speak with select coworkers, including his therapist, but not with Caroline Ellison and Zixiao "Gary" Wang, who have pled guilty and are working with investigators.

They said that because Bankman-Fried is not utilizing the auto-delete option, a Signal ban is not required and that any worries he had are "unfounded."

There was "no proof," according to the attorneys, that Bankman-Fried was accountable for prior suspected illicit transactions. They also wanted to have a bail restriction prohibiting him from accessing FTX, Alameda, or cryptocurrency holdings removed.

Kaplan gave prosecutors till Monday to respond to Bankman-concerns Fried's in an order on Saturday.

The judge said, "The court expects all counsel to refrain from disparaging characterizations of the acts and intentions of their opponents."