In a conference call on Wednesday, FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried’s attorney announced that Bankman-Fried will testify in his own defence. Federal prosecutors will be permitted to cross-examine him and grill him on the demise of his cryptocurrency exchange, FTX, thanks to the decision made by his legal team.
After being able to provide the accused fraudster a sufficient supply of his ADHD medicine, Bankman-Fried decided to testify on behalf of his defence team and federal prosecutors. Before the court, his defence had previously claimed that he was unable to participate in his defence due to a lack of access to the medication.
The government’s case is anticipated to be concluded Thursday morning, at which point the legal team for the co-founder of FTX will launch its own defence. A Federal Bureau of Investigation agent who will testify as a summary witness is the only person that prosecutors have left to call.
Mark Cohen, the defence attorney, stated during the conversation that the defence will bring three additional witnesses in addition to Bankman-Fried to testify.
The prosecution rested its case in a filing on Tuesday night, and his attorneys had objected to the government’s request to start their defence right away.
Most people agree that it’s a dangerous move. It also exposes Bankman-Fried to a cross-examination by federal prosecutors, even though his defence team will be able to interrogate him and the former billionaire will be able to present his own account of the collapse. The prosecution has so far brought several of Bankman-Fried’s senior executives, including Nishad Singh and Caroline Ellison, his former love interest and current CEO of Alameda Research, to testify.
Source (CNBC)
