In an effort to free "digital assets" frozen in China, "genius" crypto scammer Samuel Bankman-Fried is accused of ordering Alameda Research to issue a payment to a private crypto wallet allegedly belonging to one or more Chinese officials. Federal prosecutors added this charge to the growing list of crimes the former CEO of FTX is facing.
In the indictment, prosecutors allege that Bankman-Fried sought to pay off Chinese officials in an effort to unfreeze accounts belonging to his hedge fund, Alameda Research. The accounts, which the Chinese governemnt had frozen in a crackdown on cryptocurrencies, held more than $1 billion of digital assets, prosecutors say.
The accounts were released after the payment was transferred in from Alameda's main trading account to a private cryptocurrency wallet, according to the indictment.
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The 31-year-old Bankman-Fried has previously acknowledged mishandling his business but has denied committing fraud.
Three of Bankman-Fried's former business partners — Gary Wang, Caroline Ellison and Nishad Singh — have pleaded guilty to numerous charges and are cooperating with investigators.
If convicted on all counts, he could face more than 155 years in prison. A trial has been scheduled for October.
