The United States Attorney’s Office opposes a petition from former FTX Digital Markets co-CEO Ryan Salame to void his guilty plea as part of charges involving campaign finance violations.
In an Aug. 26 filing in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, prosecutors said they would oppose a petition brought by Salame’s legal team in writing by Sept. 4. The former FTX executive’s lawyers filed a petition for a writ of error coram nobis, attempting to have the court overturn Salame’s plea agreement that resulted in a seven-and-a-half-year prison sentence.
Salame claimed that prosecutors implied during his plea negotiations that they would not pursue an investigation into his partner, Michelle Bond. On Aug. 22, authorities unsealed an indictment against Bond for campaign finance law violations related to her 2022 campaign for a seat in the US House of Representatives.
“Salame’s petition is premised on the (demonstrably false) allegation that he was induced to plead guilty based on representations by the Government that in exchange for pleading guilty, the Government would cease investigating Bond for conspiring with Salame to commit criminal campaign finance violations,” said the filing.
Source: SDNY
Bond, Salame’s partner during FTX’s collapse, ran to represent New York’s 1st Congressional District in 2022. Her candidacy did not advance beyond the Republican primary, losing to Nicholas J. LaLota by roughly 5,000 votes. The indictment alleged that Bond and Salame conspired regarding funds used for her congressional campaign.
FTX in court
In September 2023, Salame pleaded guilty to conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business and engaging in campaign finance fraud. In May, a federal judge sentenced him to 90 months behind bars. After petitioning for a delay due to reported medical complications after a dog bite, Salame is scheduled to report to prison on Oct. 13.
If a judge were to accept Salame’s petition to void his plea deal and sentencing, it’s possible he could face a full criminal trial in the future. His agreement with prosecutors required him to pay roughly $6 million in penalties to the government and $6 million to FTX debtors.
Related: FTX says creditors supported reorganization plan with 95% vote
Salame, named in the same indictment as Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried, was the only party who did not testify in the trial of the former FTX CEO. Former FTX engineering director Nishad Singh and co-founder Gary Wang accepted plea deals, testified at SBF’s trial, and are scheduled to be sentenced in October and November, respectively.
Since being sentenced, Salame has been active on X, posting allegations against FTX executives, including former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison. Salame claimed without clear evidence that Ellison “was more guilty than SBF.”
In March, a judge sentenced Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison. His legal team has filed a notice of appeal. At the time of publication, Ellison’s sentencing hearing had not been scheduled.
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