Sam Bankman-Fried Is Apparently Ready to Swallow the Bitter Pill of Extradition

Sam Bankman Fried, former FTX CEO is expected to appear before a judge in the Bahamas on Monday instead, to be extradited to the United States to face 8 criminal charges of fraud and conspiracy, a source close to the matter said.

The fallen billionaire and crypto genius is thinking of willfully deciding to return to the US after he initially petitioned to not waive his rights to be extradited, and was placed in the custody of prison guards at the infamous Bahamas Department of Corrections (Fox Hill Prison) where he sits watching movies and reading news articles about himself as he attempts to adapt to his new life, far removed from his luxurious life in Albany.

It is not known what spurred him to reconsider the extradition fight, but the former ‘crypto darling’ whose extradition hearing was scheduled for February 8, could be sentenced to 115 years in a US prison where prosecutors labeled his dealings at FTX as “one of the biggest financial frauds in US history.”

Michael Zweiback, a Los Angeles-based criminal lawyer who spoke on the matter earlier in the week said after extradition, “he will be placed in handcuffs and put on board a plane with an escort from the US Marshals Service and brought to La Guardia or JFK Airport and brought straight to the SDNY courthouse (the Manhattan federal court).

“He can sign extradition paperwork tomorrow and be there within a week,” he said.

Bankman-Fried and his lawyers attempted to get bail since his arrest last Monday, but were denied and were expected to seek another hearing on January 7 so that he no longer sits in the medical area of the prison where officials say he remains in “good spirits.”

The Washington Post reported that the former billionaire said, “It’s okay, I will deal with it,” when asked by guards how he felt watching news reports about himself splattered around the globe in recent days.

It is unclear if the Bahamas will press charges against Bankman-Fried and attempt to hold him. But its Securities Commission Executive Director Christina Rolle revealed to Commissioner Police Clayton Fernander that it was made aware of possible fraud when his Digital Markets Co-chief Executive Officer Ryan Salame alerted the board about funds being diverted from FTX to Alameda Research, to cover losses.

Billions of dollars are reportedly missing amidst the bankruptcy of the exchange, as customers and investors await the outcome of this big financial scandal.