In summary
- Former FTX executive Ryan Salame has asked a US judge to reconsider his conviction and prevent charges against his partner, Michelle Bond, alleging that prosecutors failed to keep their promise to end the investigation into Bond.
- Salame’s lawyers argue that the government used the threat of further investigation into Bond to force his guilty plea, but prosecutors deny those claims.
- Salame was sentenced to 90 months in prison for conspiracy to make illegal political contributions and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business, as part of a broader investigation into the collapse of FTX.
Former FTX executive Ryan Salame has asked a US judge to reconsider his conviction and prevent any potential charges against his partner, Michelle Bond, alleging that prosecutors failed to follow through on a promise to end the investigation into Bond as part of his plea deal.
Bloomberg and CNBC first reported on Salame’s court filing, which alleges that federal prosecutors used the threat of continuing to investigate Bond, a former congressional candidate and mother of his child, to force his guilty plea.
“In an effort to induce Salame’s guilty plea, government attorneys conveyed that they would stop investigating Bond if Salame pleaded guilty, the document said. “Given Salame’s stated desire to protect Bond, Salame responded by agreeing to a plea agreement.”
Salame’s lawyers argue that the government “went back on its word” by resuming its investigation into Bond and “seeking an indictment against him.”
However, the US Attorney’s Office has rejected these claims, describing them as self-serving and inaccurate. Prosecutors insist that Salame was explicitly informed that his guilty plea would not stop the investigation into Bond’s conduct.
Lawyers representing Salame told the Southern District Court of New York that: “Relief should be granted because there are serious questions about the legality of the Government’s tactics to induce Salame to plead guilty,” according to the document.
Salame’s accusations come as he prepares to begin his prison sentence later this year.
The former co-president of FTX’s Bahamas subsidiary was sentenced to 90 months in prison for conspiracy to make illegal political contributions and defrauding the Federal Election Commission. He was also found guilty of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business due to his involvement with FTX.
His plea deal was part of a broader investigation into the collapse of FTX, a Cryptocurrency exchange that collapsed in November 2022 amid allegations of widespread fraud.
Salame did not cooperate with prosecutors, unlike other top FTX executives including Caroline Ellison, Nishad Singh and Gary Wang, who testified against the exchange’s founder Sam Bankman-Fried.
Bankman-Fried, sentenced to 25 years in prison in March, was found guilty of orchestrating one of the largest financial frauds in history, siphoning off billions in client funds.
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