US prosecutors have reportedly brought FTX Digital Markets former co-CEO Ryan Salame into court over allegations of corruption Alameda Research implicated in China bribery scandal.
While trying to unfreeze some FTX and Alameda Research accounts, Salam opened accounts using the names of people identified as prostitutes in Thailand. This happened with the support of Salam’s campaign funds Violation charges and 90 months in prison.
Crosshairs: Former FTX co-CEO meets with US prosecutors
On September 5, U.S. prosecutors filed a document in the New York District Court opposing Salam’s petition Withdrawing guilty pleas to campaign finance violations.
The former FTX co-CEO withdrew his plea on August 29. However, Judge Lewis Kaplan Orderly Both parties will appear in court on September 12 Address this issue at the hearing.
In a motion to prevent Salam from withdrawing his guilty plea, prosecutors outlined allegations including his involvement in Alameda Researche’s bribery scandal in China.
Lawyers called Salam’s petition outrageous and selfish. They said the move The procedure is flawed and lacks legal and factual basis.
The former FTX executive filed the petition after authorities said they would investigate his partner, Michelle Bond.
The timing of the petition showed it lacked merit and was patently dishonest, the Sept. 5 filing said. Prosecutors said Salaam had accepted full responsibility for his actions before sentencing.
However, he later changed his stance and resorted to incomplete, inaccurate and false statements to evade sentencing. Prosecutors believe that the former FTX co-CEO’s application was an attempt to evade prosecution for his involvement in Massive illegal campaign finance scheme.
Salame is accused of assisting former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried in illegally donating to political campaigns. Prosecutors said he Billions of dollars moved through unregistered money transfer businesses.
Meanwhile, Michelle Bond faces cost Violations of campaign finance laws. In 2022, Bond is running for a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives on behalf of the Republican Party.
Salam said he plans to discuss a plea deal in Bond’s criminal case. Both men are currently free on bail awaiting the conclusion of the case and sentencing.
Alameda’s Chinese bribery scandal
Prosecutors’ most recent filing cites transcripts of a 2023 conference call with an assistant U.S. attorney regarding alleged bribery in China by former FTX CEO Bankman-Fried.
Sam Bankman-Fried is suspected of bribing some Chinese officials. Unfreezing of Alameda Research’s accounts on local cryptocurrency exchanges.
U.S. prosecutors allege that Salam participated in a bribery scheme that used the names of Thai prostitutes to open accounts. witness During the Bankman-Fried trial.
Ellison claims Alameda paid $150 million in bribes to Chinese officials in 2021 to lift blockade $1 billion in funds frozen in OKX and Huobi accounts. The report noted that Salam may have influenced the unfreezing of the funds.
The prosecutor stated: “We have evidence that (Salaam) was involved in operations to unfreeze accounts, including opening cryptocurrency accounts to self-trade. Our understanding is that he used (personal identification information) of people he identified as prostitutes in Thailand to open accounts.”
Sarame Plea A federal judge sentenced him in May to 7.5 years in prison after he was convicted of campaign finance fraud and conspiracy to operate an unregistered money transmitting business. He is expected to go to trial on Oct. 13.
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