The disgraced founder of FTX has reportedly been arrested by Bahamian authorities.
Coin Desk broke the news after a press release by the Attorney General of the Bahamas Ryan Pinder KC circulated on the web.
In the press release AG Pinder was quoted saying “On December 12, 2022, the Office of the Attorney General of the Bahamas is announcing the arrest by the Royal Bahamas Police Force of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) former CEO of FTX.”
The statement would go on to say charges were filed against him in the United States and SBF will likely be extradited back to the US to face those charges.
CNBC reported:
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was arrested by Bahamian authorities Monday evening after the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York shared a sealed indictment with the Bahamian government, setting the stage for extradition and U.S. trial for the onetime crypto billionaire at the heart of the crypto exchange’s collapse.
Before his arrest was announced, Bankman-Fried had been expected to testify virtually before the House Financial Services Committee on Tuesday. His arrest is the first concrete move by regulators to hold individuals accountable for the multi-billion dollar implosion of FTX last month.
He was the second biggest donor to the Democrat party last election cycle.
From Coin Desk:
“As a result of the notification received and the material provided therewith, it was deemed appropriate for the Attorney General to seek SBF’s arrest and hold him in custody pursuant to our nation’s Extradition Act,” the statement, attributed to Attorney General Ryan Pinder, said.
“At such time as a formal request for extradition is made, The Bahamas intends to process it promptly, pursuant to Bahamian law and its treaty obligations with the United States.”
In the same statement, Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis said the country would continue pursuing its own investigation into FTX’s collapse, alongside the U.S.’s criminal charges.
