As the crypto-verse continues to recover from the FTX crash that occurred back in Nov. 2022, the CEO of the defunct crypto exchange continues to make headlines. Sam Bankman-Fried submitted pretrial motions seeking the dismissal of a significant portion of the charges brought against him based on various legal justifications.
Following the downfall of FTX, SBF went on to plead not guilty to 13 counts of fraud and conspiracy. His charges ranged from wire, securities, and commodities fraud allegations to even bribery. While the FTX chief’s trial is scheduled for Oct. 2, 2023, he was seen trying to avoid dealing with a few of these charges.
During his pretrial motions, SBF’s lawyers requested the dismissal of charges like conspiring to commit wire fraud against FTX customers, wire fraud against FTX customers, conspiracy to commit wire fraud against Alameda Research lenders, wire fraud against Alameda Research lenders, and conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
The grounds for dismissal were that the prosecution failed to establish a valid property right and did not accurately “state an offense.”
This wasn’t all. His attorneys also filed a motion to toss out several other charges on the grounds of discovery. This included bank fraud conspiracy, unlicensed money transmitter operation, unlawful political contribution, and bribery charges. Additionally, a third motion was filed pursuing the dismissal of fraud charges linked to FTX customers and the unlicensed money transmitter charge. This was based on the grounds that they “failed to state an offense.”
Here’s what SBF did not try to dismiss
The FTX chief’s lawyers did not request the dismissal of charges related to conspiracy to commit securities fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Lawyers representing the former CEO believe that prosecutors charged SBF in a “rush to judgment.” They further added,
“Rather than wait for traditional civil and regulatory processes following their ordinary course to address the situation, the Government jumped in with both feet, improperly seeking to turn these civil and regulatory issues into federal crimes.”
Prosecutors have a deadline until May 29 to respond to SBF’s request for dismissal. A hearing to present arguments will take place on June 15 before U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan.