2 Sam Bankman-Fried Associates Plead Guilty To Fraud, FTX Founder Heads To US To Face Charges

ndtv.com:

Sam Bankman-Fried has said he does not believe he has criminal liability. (File)

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried left the Bahamas on Wednesday on a US-bound flight to face fraud charges, as federal prosecutors announced that two of his former associates had pleaded guilty to similar charges and were now cooperating with the government.

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a video posted on Twitter late Wednesday night that Caroline Ellison, former CEO of Alameda Research, and Gary Wang, co-founder of FTX, had pleaded guilty to defrauding investors in the crypto trading platform.

The revelation that two of Sam Bankman-Fried's closest former associates had decided to cooperate with the government significantly ramped up pressure on the former billionaire.

Williams said that Sam Bankman-Fried is now in FBI custody and on his way to the U.S and urged others involved in the alleged fraud to come forward.

"If you participated in misconduct at FTX or Alameda, now is the time to get ahead of it," Williams said. "We are moving quickly and our patience is not eternal."

"I also said that last week's announcement would not be our last, and let me be clear once again, neither is today's," he added.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in a separate statement on Wednesday evening said it had also charged Ellison and Wang for their roles in a multiyear scheme to defraud equity investors of FTX.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission also said it had filed fraud charges against Ellison and Wang.

An attorney for Ellison did not respond immediately to request for comment.

"Gary has accepted responsibility for his actions and takes seriously his obligations as a cooperating witness," Ilan Graff, a lawyer for Wang, said