In a Manhattan courtroom this week, two of Sam Bankman-Fried’s former MIT friends testified against their former classmate, confidant, and boss — a man who is alleged to have run a crypto empire that defrauded thousands of customers out of billions of dollars. The witnesses worked at the crypto exchange FTX while residing with the company’s founder in the Bahamas.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos questioned Gary Wang, a less well-known co-founder of FTX, on Thursday: “Did you commit financial crimes while working at FTX?”
Wang answered, “Yes.” He claimed that Bankman-Fried, Nishad Singh, the former head of engineering at FTX, and Caroline Ellison, the CEO of sister hedge fund Alameda Research and a former girlfriend of Bankman-Fried, assisted him in committing his crimes, including wire and commodities fraud.
Do any of the individuals you committed those crimes with happen to be present in the courtroom today, Mr. Wang? Roos went on.
Wang, who was wearing an oversized, rumpled suit, a red tie, and glasses, stooped awkwardly to his feet before saying, “Yes,” after taking a look around the courtroom.
Roos questioned, “Who do you see?”
He pronounced it, “Sam Bankman-Fried.”
The trial, which is slated to last six weeks, will resume on Tuesday with important testimony anticipated from Ellison, who is regarded as the prosecution’s star witness and has already entered guilty pleas to several charges. Seven federal allegations against Bankman-Fried, including money laundering, wire fraud, and securities fraud, could result in a life sentence behind bars.
Bankman-Fried, 31, has so far been a largely silent presence in court while paying close attention to the testimony of others and occasionally taking notes for his lawyers. However, Bankman-Fried became very agitated as Wang testified against him, turning his head from his former friend to the ground at one point, and appearing visibly upset.
Source (CNBC)
