FTX’s Former Boss Requests Gag Order for All Witnesses in Criminal Case

Advocates of FTX's former boss Sam Bankman-Fried have agreed to a gag order restricting him from making comments that could change his criminal trial.

The former FTX boss also agreed to it but argued that other possible witnesses, including FTX's new chief executive officer John Ray, should be gagged together.

Sam Bankman-Fried Seeks Gag Order for Comments to Criminal Case

Prosecutors requested a gag order against FTX's former CEO on July 20. The government alleged that SBF attempted to tamper with a fair trial by publicly discrediting witness Caroline Ellison in an interview with the New York Times.

Caroline was once Sam Bankman-Fried's business and romantic partner but became one of the federal government's witnesses in his case at the end of 2022.

The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) filed this complaint against SBF, alleging him of leaking the private documents of Caroline Ellison.

According to the DoJ, SBF tried to share Ellison's writings with a reporter to include them in one of the New York Times' publications on July 20.

However, on Saturday, July 22, SBF's advocate firm, Cohen & Gresser LLP, submitted a letter to the United States District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan.

Source: Courtlistener

In the letter, they denied the allegations by Sam Bankman-Fried's prosecutors but agreed to accept a gag order, as sought by the prosecutors.

Notably, a gag order is an official directive that forbids the disclosure of specific information. It is often referred to as a suppression order.

Judges often issue gag orders in the context of court proceedings, although other governmental entities or for-profit businesses may also issue them.

However, now, SBF will not be able to make any comment that publicly discredits a government witness by disclosing personal information that may injure the jury pool.

SMF's Request

Moreover, despite accepting the suppression, SBF's lawyers want the court to issue a gag order to all parties and witnesses related to the criminal suit.

According to the lawyers, this includes the United States government officials, past employees of the defunct crypto exchange FTX, FTX's Debtor legal entities, Alameda Research, and other possible witnesses related to the case.

Buttressing the request, the attorneys explained that there is currently a toxic media enrionment" around their client since the crackdown on the crypto exchange.

They also noted that the current FTX's chief executive officer was one of the key culprits in the collapse. According to the attorneys, John Ray has continually attacked and insulted Bankman-Fried while making public comments.

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