SBF’s bid to context the additional charges imposed by the DOJ has been bolstered by the latest ruling of the Bahamas Supreme Court.
“Leave is granted to the claimant to commence proceedings for judicial review. All of the grounds advanced by the claimants disclose arguable claims with a real prospect of success,” Judge Loren Klein wrote in the court order.
In other words, the court has temporarily restrained the government from approving the addition of further charges to Bankman-Fried’s US indictment.
It needs to be told that SBF lawyers sought leave from the court to apply for judicial review of the orders.
The disgraced founder is currently locked up in the US and awaiting trial set in Oct after pleading not guilty.
The high-profile case has taken a new turn as a result of Bahmas’ court ruling, which also creates prospective trial delays and increases uncertainty in the legal process.
The aforementioned issues were recently brought up by SBF’s lead attorney Mark Cohen, who said that the Bahamas legal proceedings could take “months or years” longer than expected, delaying the October U.S. trial date or leaving him with little time to build a defense against the additional allegations.
Bankman-Fried’s attorneys are contesting the additional charges levied against him in the U.S. which they argue breached the extradition agreement with the Caribbean nation.
SBF Lawyers Accused US Gov Of Not Following Extradition Norms
The government is believed to have moved swiftly to indict Mr. Bankman-Fried on December 9, 2022, less than a month after FTX’s bankruptcy and before it had even been granted, by skipping over the regular civil regulatory procedures, according to the 12th June filing.
Eight counts were imposed in the grand jury indictment, including violations of campaign finance laws, securities fraud, money laundering, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud against lenders and customers.
After the Bahamas agreed to extradite on seven of the original eight charges, the Government ignored and decided to prosecute on all eight charges, the filing alleged.
The Manhattan US attorney’s office, which is in charge of prosecuting Bankman-Fried, has not yet made any remarks regarding the Bahamian court’s ruling.
In response to SBF’s claims in the US court, prosecutors had previously suggested that they would dismiss the extra charges if the Bahamas’ permission was not secured.