Campaign finance charges against Sam Bankman-Fried are still on the table and will be included in an indictment next week against the founder of failed crypto exchange FTX, prosecutors said in a letter to a Manhattan federal judge Tuesday.
Bankman-Fried faces decades in prison if convicted on the original seven-count indictment, which centers around an alleged multibillion-dollar fraud against FTX investors.
However, the government had been forced to drop additional allegations of campaign finance fraud in July because of the terms of the U.S. extradition treaty with the Bahamas, where Bankman-Fried and his company were based.
The treaty with Bahamas prevents prosecutors from adding further charges against someone who has been extradited without first getting permission from the other government.
The U.S. government had asked the Bahamas to extradite Bankman-Fried on a seven-count indictment, but prosecutors didn't get clearance from the Bahamas to add further charges of campaign finance and bribery to Bankman-Fried's indictment.
Persons:
Sam Bankman, Fried, Bankman, didn't, FTX, —, Dawn Giel
Organizations:
Attorney's, Southern, of
Locations:
Manhattan, Bahamas, U.S, of New York