Disgraced FTX founder and Democrat super donor Sam Bankman-Fried, who was convicted of fraud and money laundering last year, returns to a New York court Thursday to be sentenced for his crimes.
It is certain the 32-year-old will be going to jail; what is not known is how long for.
As Breitbart News reported, Bankman-Fried has been found guilty of all charges stemming from the collapse of his cryptocurrency exchange company FTX.
His legal team have called for leniency as prosecutors push for 40 to 50 years in prison.
They say such a sentence is warranted for someone who lied to investors and banks, and stole billions in deposits from customers of his now-bankrupt crypto exchange, FTX.
His defence team has proposed five to 6.5 years, accusing the government of adopting “a medieval view of punishment” by insisting on a lengthy term behind bars for a non-violent, first-time criminal, the BBC reports.
The question has generated hundreds of pages of letters from former FTX customers, family, friends of his parents – even complete strangers – trying to sway Judge Lewis Kaplan, the federal justice who will decide his fate.
FTX’s collapse in 2022 was a stunning fall for Bankman-Fried, who had become a billionaire and business celebrity promoting the firm, a platform people could use to deposit and trade crypto.
It attracted millions of customers, before rumours of financial trouble sparked a run on deposits and its ultimate demise.