During the trial, the court found the defence argument misleading, logically flawed and speculative, saying that Bankman-Fried had obstructed justice and tampered with witnesses in mounting his defense — something Kaplan said he weighed in his sentencing decision.
A United States court in lower Manhattan manned by Judge Lewis Kaplan has convicted a popular crypto mogul, Sam Bankman-Fried to 25 years in prison for a massive fraud that unravelled with the collapse of FTX, once one of the world's most popular platforms for exchanging digital currency.
During the trial, the court found the defence argument misleading, logically flawed and speculative, saying that Bankman-Fried had obstructed justice and tampered with witnesses in mounting his defense — something Kaplan said he weighed in his sentencing decision.
Bankman-Fried, wearing a beige jailhouse jumpsuit, struck an apologetic tone, saying he had made a series of "selfish" decisions while leading FTX and "threw it all away."
"It haunts me every day," he said in his statement.
Prosecutors had sought as much as 50 years, while Bankman-Fried's legal team argued for no more than 6½ years. He was convicted on seven criminal countsin November and had been held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since.
In a statement following Thursday's sentencing, Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said Bankman-Fried had orchestrated one of the largest frauds in financial history.
“Today’s sentence will prevent the defendant from ever again committing fraud and is an important message to others who might be tempted to engage in financial crimes that justice will be swift, and the consequences will be severe.”
Bankman-Fried's lawyers had pleaded for leniency, citing what they described as mental health struggles and his purported generosity in his personal life. They also argued that FTX users had not ultimately suffered substantial losses — something current FTX administrator John Ray said was false in a letter to Kaplan in advance of Thursday's sentencing.
However, prosecutors contended that a stiffer sentence was needed due to the brazen nature of the crime, the degree of the victims' losses and damages, and Bankman-Fried's obvious lack of remorse.
The prosecutors had also tendered before the court documents from victims describing how Bankman-Fried's acts affected their lives.
According to Business Standard, prosecutors also claimed Bankman-Fried had cost customers, investors and lenders over USD 10 billion by misappropriating billions of dollars to fuel his quest for influence and dominance in the new industry, and had illegally used money from FTX depositors to cover his expenses, which included purchasing luxury properties in the Caribbean, and alleged bribes to Chinese officials and private planes.