The United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York has launched a page on its website appealing to Sam Bankman-Fried’s alleged victims of fraud at FTX to come forward and informing them about court proceedings.
In a Jan. 6 filing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon requested the federal court allow her office to take “reasonable, accurate, and timely notice” to inform alleged fraud victims from crypto exchange FTX while under the leadership of Bankman-Fried. According to Sassoon, the government proposed an “alternative plan” for notifying victims in the FTX case through an online notice which went Live Jan.
According to the court filing, the number of victims in the FTX case — more than one million creditors — made it “impractical” to rely on more traditional methods of notification “without unduly complicating or prolonging the proceedings in this matter.” Judge Lewis Kaplan approved the request the same day.
“If you believe that you may have been a victim of fraud by Samuel Bankman-Fried, a/k/a ‘SBF,’ please contact the victim/witness coordinator at the United States Attorney’s Office,” said the notice.
The notice on the SDNY’s website informed viewers of the eight criminal counts Bankman-Fried faces in court, as well as the rights victims have under federal law. This included the right of being informed about public court proceedings, plea bargains with Bankman Fried, and conferences with the U.S. attorney.
Bankman-Fried pleaded not guilty to all the criminal charges against him after his arrest in Bahamas and extradition to America. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission both announced charges against the former CEO of FTX, while Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison and FTX founder Gary Wang already pled guilty.
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Separate from the criminal cases against Wang and Ellison, Bankman-Fried is also in progress. The next public hearing is set for January 11. The U.S. Departure of Justice was currently attempting to seize more than $450,000,000 worth of Robinhood shares connected to FTX Group. BlockFi, Bankman-Fried and other legal claimants have also made claims.