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Attorneys for Sam Bankman-Fried seek pre-trial release due to inadequate internet access.
Attorneys for former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried have sought a pre-trial release, citing insufficient internet access in the federal detention facility. SBF’s legal representatives contended that inadequate internet connectivity hampers their defense preparations and results in wasted time.
The court submission dated Sept. 8 marked the second request for pre-trial release within a week, following an appellate judge’s denial of SBF’s plea for immediate release from custody on Sept. 6. The judge subsequently referred the motion to a panel of three judges.
SBF’s legal team asserted that despite assurances from the government regarding access to a laptop on weekdays from 8 am to 7 pm, these commitments have not been fulfilled. The attorneys also pointed out several occasions when SBF’s access to an internet-enabled laptop was interrupted due to jail activities.
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The first occurrence was on Sept. 1, when Bankman-Fried was summoned back to his cell at 2:30 pm for a headcount, resulting in a loss of four hours for preparation. In another instance on Sept. 6, SBF was not released from his cell until 11:00 am. When Bankman-Fried attempted to access the discovery database, the poor internet connection permitted the review of only one document from the database. The legal team remarked in its filing:
“Despite the Government’s efforts, there does not appear to be a way to solve the internet access problem in the cellblock. That means that Mr. Bankman-Fried has no way to review and search documents in the discovery database or the AWS database before the trial. The defendant cannot prepare for trial with these kinds of limitations.”
Following his arrest in the Bahamas on Dec. 12 last year, SBF was released on a $250-million bond, after which he spent most of his time under house arrest at his parents’ home in California. However, his bail was revoked on Aug. 11 after it was discovered that he attempted to contact and intimidate former FTX executives and witnesses involved in the lawsuit.
Since that time, Bankman-Fried’s legal team has submitted multiple appeals for pre-trial release; however, the judges reviewing these requests have indicated that he has breached bail conditions on several occasions, thus preventing an immediate release.
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