As he prepares to file a plea deal on federal fraud allegations, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried has asked the court to redact the names of two co-signers of his $250 million bond, saying his parents, who also co-signed, faced threats and harassment.
In a Tuesday court filing reviewed by , Bankman-Fried’s lawyers said his law professor’s parents “received a steady stream of threatening correspondence” and asked the court to redact the names of two other co-signers of the bond.
Meanwhile, Bankman-Fried is scheduled to appear before US District Judge Lewis Kaplan at a hearing in federal court in Manhattan at 2 p.m. Tuesday, where he is expected to plead not guilty to eight counts of fraud.
US Attorney Damian Williams alleges Bankman-Fried defrauded investors out of $1.8 billion and illegally used FTX customer deposits to shore up his Alameda Research hedge fund, buying real estate and distributing millions in political donations.
Bankman-Fried, whose crypto exchange FTX went bankrupt in November, has publicly denied knowingly committing fraud, instead blaming shoddy bookkeeping.
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried will appear in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday, where he is scheduled to plead not guilty to eight counts of fraud
Bankman-Fried will answer the charges set out in an indictment signed by Damian Williams (above), US Attorney for the Southern District of New York
He plans to plead not guilty to all charges on Tuesday, a source familiar with the matter told Portal. His lawyer did not immediately respond to a request for comment from .
After his arrest and extradition last month, Bankman-Fried, 30, is at large and living under electronic surveillance at the home of his parents, both Stanford University law professors, in Palo Alto, California.
In their most recent court filing, Bankman-Fried’s attorneys asked Judge Kaplan to seal the names of two co-signers on his $250 million acknowledgment statement.
The bail conditions imposed by the court required the accused fraudster’s parents, Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried, to co-sign his bond, but also two additional guarantors to sign separate bonds of smaller amounts.
Now, Bankman-Fried’s attorney, Mark S. Cohen, says in the filing that the parents have been the target of threats and harassment, and is asking that the additional co-signers be allowed to remain anonymous.
People walk past New York Federal Courthouse last month. FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried is scheduled to appear at a hearing on Tuesday
Bankman-Fried, 30, was out on bail and living under electronic surveillance at the home of his parents, both Stanford University law professors, in Palo Alto, California
“Among other things, Mr. Bankman-Fried’s parents have received a steady stream of threatening correspondence, including communications expressing a desire to cause them physical harm,” Cohen wrote.
The lawyer added that there are “serious concerns that the two additional guarantors would face similar intrusions on their privacy, as well as threats and harassment” if their identities were revealed.
The motion calls for Kaplan to “issue an order ordering that the names and identifying information of the two remaining guarantors on their bonds be defaced and not publicly disclosed by the government.”
Bankman-Fried faces two counts of wire fraud and six counts of conspiracy, including money laundering and campaign finance violations.
If convicted, he faces up to 115 years in prison.
Earlier, two of Bankman-Fried’s top lieutenants pleaded guilty to the fraud charges and agreed to work with federal prosecutors to deal a potentially significant blow to his defense.
Carolyn Ellison, 28, who ran Alameda, and Gary Wang, 29, co-founder of FTX, previously pleaded guilty and agreed to work with prosecutors to seek leniency
Carolyn Ellison, 28, who ran Alameda, and Gary Wang, 29, co-founder of FTX, pleaded guilty to charges including wire fraud, securities fraud and merchandise fraud.
Both are out on bail and are working with prosecutors to grant leniency before sentencing.
Their pleas were kept secret until after his extradition from the Bahamas, where FTX is based, Bankman-Fried was on the air fearing he might flee.
Ellison and Wang both face decades in prison if convicted.
FTX, which was once valued at $32 billion, filed for bankruptcy protection on Nov. 11 after alleged embezzlement of customer funds left a billion-dollar hole in the crypto exchange’s books.
The collapse of FTX, the world’s second-largest crypto exchange, led to creditors trying to recoup billions of dollars in losses.
Prior to his Dec. 12 arrest in the Bahamas, SBF acknowledged flaws in risk management at FTX but claimed he did not believe he was criminally liable.