Wednesday commenced the second day of Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial. He stands accused of seven counts of fraud and conspiracy, together with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit cash laundering.
The prosecution and the protection each delivered their opening statements following the choice of a jury. Right here’s what you must know:
1. The prosecution desires the jury to imagine Bankman-Fried is the villain
Prosecutor Thane Rehn spoke on the podium and instructed the jury that one 12 months in the past, Bankman-Fried was on prime of the world.
He hobnobbed with celebrities like Tom Brady — whose business endorsing FTX was later proven to the jury — and politicians like former President Invoice Clinton. He was rich, and he had lots of energy and affect, Rehn stated.
“All of that was constructed on lies,” Rehn concluded.
All whereas he was residing his greatest life from 2019 to early 2022, Bankman-Fried was knowingly and actively stealing FTX buyer cash, Rehn claimed.
That cash was spent on actual property within the Bahamas, political donations, and maybe most crucially, used to repay excellent loans to collectors of Alameda Analysis, his crypto hedge fund, in accordance with the prosecution.
2. The protection says the state’s conception of Bankman-Fried is “cartoonish”
Mark Cohen, Bankman-Fried’s legal professional, described his consumer far otherwise than the jet-setting, beachfront property-owning legal that the federal government believes him to be.
“Sam,” as Cohen referred to Bankman-Fried, is only a “math nerd who didn’t drink or occasion,” he instructed the jury.
Bankman-Fried “didn’t defraud anybody” or “intend to defraud anybody,” Cohen added.
As an alternative, he acted in “good religion,” executing sound enterprise selections previous to and in the course of the collapse of FTX – which Cohen alluded to because the “storm” – that had been cheap on the time.
3. Bankman-Fried’s buddy turned foe
The federal government’s second witness – former FTX developer Adam Yedidia – could have come as a disappointing shock to Bankman-Fried, who as soon as once more appeared in courtroom in an apparently outsized swimsuit.
Yedidia, Bankman-Fried’s former faculty roommate and “shut buddy,” instructed jurors he give up his place on the alternate in early November 2022 after one other co-worker instructed him that FTX buyer funds had been used to repay Alameda collectors.
Yedidia was supplied immunity in alternate for his cooperation with the prosecution and truthful testimony. The federal government will proceed their questioning of Yedidia and the protection could have the chance to cross-examine on Thursday.
4. The state accuses Bankman-Fried of being secretive
It’s not simply the allegation that Bankman-Fried stole from his clients that considerations the prosecution. It’s that he allegedly tried to interact in a cover-up to hide potential crimes.
Rehn claimed that the previous FTX CEO “secretly” gave Alameda “particular entry” to cash people had put into FTX accounts. As a part of FTX’s code, Alameda was granted “limitless withdrawals” from the alternate, Rehn alleged.
This declare is the bedrock of the state’s case towards Bankman-Fried: that he covertly stole cash with out his clients’ consent.
5. What to anticipate going ahead
Now that the second day of trial is within the books and witness testimony has begun, the federal government will likely be within the driver’s seat for a lot of the trial going ahead. The following two witnesses for the federal government are former Sequoia associate Matt Huang and co-founder of FTX Gary Wang. Their testimony is anticipated to final till the tip of this week.
Because the choose defined to the potential jurors throughout jury choice and now the assembled jury throughout trial, the burden of proof is on the state. Subsequently, the state will likely be calling witnesses first. After all, the protection has the suitable to cross study them to attempt to poke holes of their testimony.
The protection is underneath no obligation to name witnesses and may merely relaxation after the prosecution finishes presenting proof. Nonetheless, they’ll current their very own proof in the event that they so select.
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