Sam Bankman-Fried Drops Request for New Trial, Citing Concerns Over Fairness

Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of the now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has formally withdrawn his motion for a retrial, citing doubts about receiving a fair hearing. In a letter to the presiding judge, Bankman-Fried expressed his intention to potentially renew the motion after the resolution of his direct appeal and a related request for the case to be reassigned. Currently serving a 25-year prison sentence for his role in FTX's 2022 collapse, Bankman-Fried was convicted on multiple counts of fraud and conspiracy. The initial motion for a new trial was submitted by his mother, Barbara Fried, who claimed that newly discovered evidence warranted a retrial. Bankman-Fried drafted the motion himself while in detention, with minimal assistance, and acknowledged consulting with his lawyers and family members. His appeal is presently before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, where his lawyer, Alexandra Shapiro, argued during oral arguments that the original trial was fundamentally unfair due to restrictions on the evidence Bankman-Fried could present to the jury.