The arrest of Sam Bankman-Fried yesterday was sudden and unexpected in light of Bankman-Fried’s plan to testify before Congress. As a criminal defense attorney, my reaction to the arrest last night remains unchanged: this is the first time that I can recall where prosecutors moved aggressively to stop a defendant from making self-incriminating statements.
His testimony would have been entirely admissible and likely devastating at trial.
I previously wrote how Bankman-Fried was doing harm to his case by speaking in the media and to Congress. So why would the Justice Department move to stop the self-inflicted damage? You have a major target who was about to voluntarily testify for hours.
That is ordinarily a dream for prosecutors, but the Justice Department moved quickly to prevent that from happening. At that stage, Bankman-Fried was not charged or in custody. He was not protected by Miranda or other constitutional rules from self-incriminating statements.
Indeed, some of us had already warned that he was causing himself considerable damage in making such statements. This was a defendant with a large legal team facing possible criminal charges who seemed eager to speak about his actions and motivations. Most prosecutors would sit back, make popcorn, and watch this unfold.
The curious move led many to question whether the Biden Administration was eager to prevent questions on Bankman-Fried’s political contributions and associations. He was the second highest donor to Democratic causes in the last election cycle. His mother, a law professor at Stanford also heads a major Democratic campaign fund.
It is also possible that the Justice Department simply wanted to show the public that it was moving aggressively despite his close Democratic ties.
It may have secured sufficient evidence (including possible cooperating witnesses) to satisfy the basis for charges and an extradition request.
Yet, that still does not explain why the Justice Department would not want to hear a full account from Bankman-Fried before effectively shutting him down as a criminal defendant. This is the first time that I can recall where the prosecutors, rather than defense counsel, moved effectively to muzzle a defendant.
Whatever the motivation, the timing of the charges effectively stopped the windfall of information coming from Bankman-Fried.
Bankman-Fried is accused of diverting customer funds from the start of his cryptocurrency exchange to support his hedge fund, Alameda Research. He is also accused of using his fraudulent practices to fund a lavish lifestyle, buy real estate, make venture investments, and fund Democratic causes. The range of charges includes with wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, securities fraud, securities fraud conspiracy, and money laundering.
The details of those transactions might have been voluntarily disclosed under intense cross examination if the Administration allowed him to appear as a witness. Moreover, Bankman-Fried was already causing himself considerable harm in media interviews.
Bankman-Fried’s parents have left Stanford and are reportedly in the Bahamas with their son. They could themselves face questions. His father, Joseph Bankman, is a tax professor and was a paid employee of his son’s company. His mother reportedly worked with him on some of these massive donations to Democrats.
The parents are reportedly now concerns that the legal costs in the case could “wipe them out.”
Bankman-Fried has admitted that only a few hours of efforts a day might have avoided these losses. It sounds like a true Millennial “my bad” defense. That will not fly in court and building on that defense might have sealed his fate.
The question is why the Justice Department moved to stop Bankman-Fried as he worked so hard to make the criminal case against himself. He comes across badly in these past interviews like a trophy-laden millennial who believes that he just needs to play to win. It is not quite that easy in a criminal case.
If he testified, Bankman-Fried could not only have made any criminal defense more difficult but he could have potentially tripped the wire for allegedly false or misleading statements under oath. It was a target-rich environment for Congress — and a potential bonanza for prosecutors.
Bankman-Fried was in a dangerous free fall. Despite his legal team, Bankman-Fried seemed to be praying for someone to “stop me before I speak again.” Someone just did.
The Biden Administration’s move seemed to bring a more positive meaning to what Ronald Reagan said were “the top 9 most terrifying words in the English Language are: I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”
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“question whether the Biden Administration was eager to prevent questions on Bankman-Fried’s political contributions and associations…..”
No shit? Ya think? Jonathan, you are adorable. I’ll bet you think the Constitution is still relevant.
“Faces questions”
THAT will put fear of God into Marxist Garland and his fully corrupt DOJ.
For fucks sake where are the GOP vikings who should be slitting
throats and pillaging the leftist congress?
“where are the GOP vikings ”
A real shame it fell (no pun intended) outta Favor. Dueling. Better late than never.
Sincerely, A.B.
Gimme a break. If that kid lives out the rest of the year it will be a miracle. Way easier to off someone in jail as crazy as that seems.
He knows way, way too much, and I’m not talking about crypto.
Yeah, his life expectancy is not so long any more.
Given his soy-titted shapeless blubber and fluorescent office pallor, he was already tempting fate.
He’s being put into the same prison as Epstein. I wonder if they fixed the cameras yet.
Epstein is likely alive, receiving his golden parachute for services rendered to NWO’s entertainment and blackmail division. Bankman-Fraud has rendered similar caliber services, albeit for less time. Odds are he will be rewarded and protected.
Very doubtful. If epstein was spotted anywhere in the world then there would be a lot of demoncrap heads rolling shortly after. Its easier to kill the target and spin it anyway you want when you OWN the media. They spin for a couple weeks then memory hole it, and its effectively gone from the publics mind.
This dufus friedman is going to get just that fried. and I doubt the cameras were fixed yet. They were to be repaired but the budget didn’t cover that just yet.
How do you hire garbage to do dirty deeds, if prospects think you’ll kill ’em when the chips are down, instead of paying them for their services?
Do you believe in holograms? I believe we will one day be ruled by holograms.
” holograms? ”
brandon is a caricature of a real, live, human, close enough?
SBF and Epstein will live like kings in Israel until the Ukraine is reconstructed into the new and improved command center and most of the goy have died suddenly. They are of the protected class, the goy….not so much.
The DOJ stock answer is “we don’t talk about investigations”
Scam Bankster-Fraud will be out on bail in a jiffy, hobnobbing with his Tribal leaders and other assorted slimebags, and will continue to wear that disgusting t-shirt. This idiot savant with the amazing connections will skate away with 16 billion dollars tucked neatly away in western Country 404 or Georgetown, Cayman Is and become an occupant in that sweet little villa close to Epstein’s on Tel Abib beach or that quiet condo in Eilat. It’s great to have that “special” back-up citizenship.
Fucker needs a solid horsewhipping then to be let loose at a stone quarry where he can ‘splain things to his best investors.
Strictly a cohencidence.
A forensic accountant, who also knows how to interpret and trace code, could get to the bottom of it all. Their life would be short, but their findings would be outstanding I’m sure.
Elections sure as hell aren’t going to fix this……
The hook nosed mafia is either protecting that little shit because he still has some use, or they’re just going to kill him to get him out of the picture.
He just would’ve played dumb, as he did for that recent interview. Political hearings are a joke.
Unless he was given immunity for his testimony and then pulled an Ollie North and he testifies in such broad terms that he can use that immunity to bar a future prosecution.
The Demoncrats had him charged in the Southern Dist. of NY…maybe he can have Epstein’s old cell…funny how TPTB never want the criminal to go to trial
Should we do a pool on how many days until Sam commits Arkancide?
10 weeks
12 weeks.
We are being mocked by such slime.
sam bankman-fried didn’t kill himself.
He got plastic surgery like Epstein.
Another possibility — that he’s thumbing his nose at all of US as he’s being allowed to get away clean as a whistle … but, he’ll have to promise to not do it anymore …