US DOJ Asks Bahamian Government Regarding Bankman-Fried’s New Charges
Since former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried challenged criminal charges filed against him after his extradition from The Bahamas, the U.S. Justice Department has requested a specialty waiver from the country to allow for parts of the case to move forward.
Bankman-Fried, who has pleaded not guilty to bank fraud and awaits an October trial, alleged that the government improperly added “several new, unrelated charges without first obtaining the express consent of the Bahamian government.” In a filing to the U.S.
District Court Southern District of New York, the DOJ argued that the Bahamian government can stop the case from moving forward, but there is no basis for dismissal at this stage as the U.S.-Bahamas treaty does not limit charging a defendant with new offenses post-extradition.
The government has informed The Bahamas of the additional charges and is seeking a specialty waiver in order to proceed on the new charges listed in the indictment.