US Prosecutors Urge Judge To Ban FTX Founder Bankman-Fried From Using Internet

U.S. prosecutors want severe restrictions on disgraced entrepreneur Sam Bankman-Fried's internet usage.

Current conditions "leave too much room for inappropriate conduct," prosecutors say.

US District Judge Lewis Kaplan had already prohibited the 30-year-old former billionaire and FTX founder — who is out on $250 million bail — from communicating with former colleagues, or using encrypted messaging apps such as Signal, which allows users to delete messages automatically.

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Federal prosecutors in Manhattan also allege that Bankman-Fried was attempting to influence potential witnesses before his October trial.

Bankman-Fried has pleaded not guilty to eight charges, including wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy, in connection with the collapse of now-bankrupt FTX.

Prosecutors have raised further concerns about Bankman-Fried's internet use, particularly his use of a virtual private network (VPN) to access the internet.

They have urged Kaplan to bar him from using the internet altogether, except to review the evidence against him or use email on his Gmail account.

He may still use voice calls and SMS messages on his cell phone, but communication with his lawyers should be limited to Zoom.

In response, Bankman-Fried's lawyers have claimed that his attempts to contact FTX's current general counsel and chief executive were intended to provide assistance rather than interfere with the trial.

They further stated that he only used a VPN to watch National Football League playoff games.

Nonetheless, they have proposed an additional bail condition, which would prohibit Bankman-Fried from using a VPN unless required to access databases containing the prosecutors' evidence needed to prepare his defense.

As for communication, Bankman-Fried may still communicate by phone, email, SMS text messaging, and Twitter direct messaging, but iMessage should be disabled from his phone.

The hearing on Bankman-Fried's bail conditions is set to take place on Thursday.

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