Attorneys representing Sam “SBF” Bankman Fried, the former CEO of FTX, have submitted a request for his pretrial release, citing inadequate internet connectivity in federal prisons. They argue that the poor internet access has hindered the preparation of his defense and resulted in lost time.
This request, dated September 8, follows a previous appeal for pretrial release that was denied by an appeals judge on September 6. The judge forwarded the motion to the next jury. SBF's legal team claims that despite assurances from the government that he would have access to laptops from 8 am to 7 pm on weekdays, these promises were not fulfilled. They also cited instances where his access to internet laptops was curtailed due to prison procedures.
On September 1, for instance, SBF was called back to his cell for a head count at 2:30 pm, a process that took four hours. Then, on September 6, he was not released from his cell until 11:00 am. When he attempted to access the discovery database, he could only view one document due to poor internet connectivity. The legal team argued that despite the government's efforts, there seems to be no solution to the problem of internet access inside cells, making it impossible for Bankman-Fried to adequately prepare for trial.
SBF had initially been released on $250 million bail after his arrest in the Bahamas on December 12. He spent much of his time at his parents' home in California. However, his bail was revoked on August 11 after it was discovered that he had attempted to contact and intimidate former FTX executives and witnesses involved in the lawsuit. His legal team has filed multiple appeals for pretrial release, but the reviewing judge maintained that he had violated his bail conditions multiple times, preventing his immediate release.
