Disgraced FTX Founder Sam Bankman-Fried Is Asking for a Shorter Prison Sentence
Sam Bankman-Fried is trying to dodge a century-long prison sentence.
The disgraced founder of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX is working with lawyers, family, and friends to receive a short prison term, or overturn his fraud conviction completely, The New York Times reported on Tuesday. That same day, his legal team filed a memo in U.S. district court arguing that he should be granted a prison sentence of just five and a quarter to six and a half years. (The charges against him carry a maximum sentence of 110 years.)
More from Robb Report
The Founder of Binance Will Pay $50 Million and Plead Guilty to Money Laundering
FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried's Bankrupt Crypto Exchange, Is Suing His Parents for Millions
The Founder of a Failed Crypto Exchange Gets 11,196 Years in Jail in Turkey
Bankman-Fried is “deeply, deeply sorry” for “the pain he caused over the last two years,” the memo said. “His sole focus after the collapse of FTX was making customers whole.”
Following FTX’s collapse in November 2022, the onetime crypto billionaire was convicted in October of stealing $8 billion from his customers, which he used for political contributions, investments, and real-estate purchases. He’s maintained his innocence, however, and is planning to appeal his conviction once the sentencing is handed down. That’s scheduled to take place on March 28, following federal prosecutors’ sentencing recommendation on March 15.
After last year’s trial, Bankman-Fried shook up his legal team, hiring the lawyer Marc Mukasey, who is known for his showmanship in court and has represented Donald Trump. Notably, he also defended Trevor Milton, the Nikola founder who was convicted of defrauding investors. Prosecutors had wanted Milton to serve 11 years in prison, but he was sentenced to just four.
Bankman-Fried has also enlisted his parents, the Stanford University law professors Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, who have persuaded former employees and friends to write letters in defense of Bankman-Fried. (A spokesperson for Bankman-Fried declined to comment to the Times, while representatives for his parents didn’t respond to the newspaper’s requests for comment.) Those letters were included in Tuesday’s memo and included writings from his younger brother and a former assistant.
It’s unclear what Judge Lewis A. Kaplan will decide when it comes to sentencing, but even if he doesn’t go with the 110-year maximum, Bankman-Fried still faces a potentially life-altering prison stay. Kaplan “could still give a very serious sentence given how young Mr. Bankman-Fried is—say, a 30- or 35-year sentence,” Miriam Baer, a vice dean at Brooklyn Law School, told the Times.
In one month, we’ll find out exactly how long that sentence is.
Sign up for Robb Report's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
