FTX's Bankman-Fried requests US court to drop charges against him
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Bankman-Fried's lawyers claim that in some of the charges directed against the defendant, prosecutors failed to "state an offense" or to "allege a valid property right."
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A courtroom sketch of founder and former CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX Sam Bankman-Fried alongside his defense attorney at his plea hearing in Manhattan federal court in New York City, US on January 3, 2023 (Reuters)
The US District Court for the Southern District of New York was asked by defendant and former FTX chief Sam Bankman-Fried on Monday to dismiss the majority of the charges against him in the case of the cryptocurrency collapse.
Lawyers for the defendant requested the dismissal of 10 out of the 13 charges, claiming that in some of the charges, prosecutors failed to "state an offense" or to "allege a valid property right."
Bankman-Fried has already pleaded not guilty to the fraud, conspiracy and money laundering charges, after being extradited to the US from his home in the Bahamas.
His trial is scheduled to begin this October in New York.
Read more: Ex-FTX CEO's buddy to cooperate with feds in exchange for plea deal
The bankrupt firm's sister trading company, Alameda Research, also went bankrupt in November, when it was valued by the market at $32 billion at one point.
Bankman-Fried is accused of fraudulently using FTX customer deposits to fund his Alameda Research hedge fund, purchase real estate, and make political contributions totaling millions of dollars.
He was compared to billionaire Warren Buffett when at one point his net worth was over $15 billion. He tried to organize a bailout but failed - leaving FTX struggling to raise billions of dollars and many customers unable to retain their money.
Almost $700 million were seized by the US government from assets belonging to the cryptocurrency firm.
FTX, a cryptocurrency derivatives exchange, tanked in November as the result of a liquidity crisis that prompted multiple federal investigations. It is alleged that the liquidity crisis was mostly due to affiliated trading firm Alameda using client funds to cover loans after the collapse of the Luna crypto network.
