The saga of the collapse of the fraud scheme that was known as FTX is far from over, but the key players in that fraud are starting to show if they have enough sense to save their own bacon.

For example, the face of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried, clearly has little sense. Any lawyer worth their salt would have repeatedly told their client to shut the hell up when they are on the hook for BILLIONS missing due to fraud and money laundering. Bankman-Friend, on the other hand, gave multiple interviews that were clearly giving his lawyer an ulcer, right up until the point that he was arrested in the Bahamas.

And speaking of that Bahamian prison Bankman-Fried was in, that was reportedly unfit for humans – so much so that he was asking to be extradited back to the United States – well, he apparently got some special privileges while he was there.

Bankman-Fried, who agreed to be extradited to the US on Wednesday after eight days at the notorious Bahamas prison, was kept with a handful of other prisoners in the facility’s sick wing, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed prison officials.”

He was given his own cot in the rat-and-maggot-infested facility in what the outlet described as a “luxury” compared to other inmates. Bankman-Fried also had access to air-conditioning “from a nearby inspector’s office, as well as running water and a toilet.”

The 30-year-old crypto huckster has “spent his days watching TV news and reading articles about himself.” Bankman-Fried has also “been allowed to play crossword puzzles” for entertainment.”

The report said the picky-eating Bankman-Fried “has been getting vegan food” in addition to more standard fare such as grits and sausage for breakfast and corned beef and chicken wings for lunch.”

Officials told Bloomberg that individual guards were assigned to watch Bankman-Fried and that a doctor examined him twice a day.”

So, not exactly suffering in “notorious” conditions. Still, Bankman-Fried has nothing good to look forward to in the United States. Especially since his ex-girlfriend and his former business partner have decided to cut deals and sing like birds in an attempt to score some better deals for themselves. You see, THEY actually listened to their legal counsel.

Caroline Ellison, the former CEO of Bankman-Fried’s crypto hedge fund company Alameda Research, and Gary Wang, a co-founder of FTX, pleaded guilty to the criminal offenses before Bankman-Fried landed in New York to face his own charges, Manhattan US Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement.”

The charges filed against the pair were “in connection with their roles in the frauds that contributed to FTX’s collapse,” Williams said.”

“Both Ms. Ellison and Mr. Wang have pled guilty to those charges and they are both cooperating with the Southern District of New York.”

Ellison pleaded guilty to seven charges of defrauding customers and investors of both FTX and Alameda, according to the agreement. The charges carry a maximum penalty of up to 110 years.”

As part of the plea deal, she was released on a $250,000 bond and is barred from leaving the US. According to court documents, she is also to make restitution in an amount to be determined by the court.”

Wang pleaded guilty to four charges including wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit commodities and securities fraud. The maximum sentence for the charges is 50 years’ imprisonment.”

Caroline Ellison and Gary Wang are cooperating in the case against Sam Bankman-Fried.pic.twitter.com/5hgIjKypwc

— Teddy Schleifer (@teddyschleifer) December 22, 2022

Pleading guilty is a surefire sign that Ellison and Wang are going to flip on Bankman-Fried, and he is going to be left holding the bulk of the wrath of the criminal court. These two were looking at significant prison sentences, and the quickest way to reduce those years behind bars (because there is no way that they completely escape jail time) is to cooperate with prosecutors. However, there are civil charges pending against all three of them.

At the same time, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the Securities and Exchange Commission have filed civil complaints against Bankman-Fried, Ellison, and Wang.”

The SEC claimed that the crypto executives were involved “in a multiyear scheme to defraud equity investors in FTX, the crypto trading platform co-founded by Samuel Bankman-Fried and Wang.”

The CFTC’s complaint charges “Ellison with fraud and material misrepresentations in connection with the sale of digital asset commodities in interstate commerce, and charges Wang with fraud in connection with the sale of digital asset commodities in interstate commerce.”

Gary Wang and Caroline Ellison have both admitted to the allegations made against them, according to a statement from the CFTC. The SEC complaint specifically mentions Ellison’s involvement in manipulating FTT, a self-issued token of FTX, to increase Alameda Research’s available collateral for lending.

This whole thing is a mess from top to bottom, and now Sam Bankman-Fried is back in the United States, and… getting bail??!?!?

But it’s okay, because he’s going to live with mommy and daddy???

FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried will be released on $250 million bond while awaiting trial for fraud and other criminal charges, a New York federal judge ruled Thursday.”

The terms of his personal recognizance bond were agreed to by prosecutors and Bankman-Fried’s lawyers. The 30-year-old will face his next hearing in New York City on Jan. 3. Bankman-Fried was expected to be released from federal custody on Thursday, a prosecutor said.”

A recognizance bond is a written commitment from the accused to appear in court when ordered. In return, Bankman-Fried’s camp would not be required to meet the full collateral requirements on the bail.”

The bond was secured by equity in his family home, and by the signatures of his parents and two other individuals with “considerable” assets.”

In addition to the $250 million package, which prosecutors called “the largest-ever pretrial bond,” the former crypto billionaire would also be required to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet, submit to mental health counseling and restrict himself to the Northern District of California.”

Judge Gabriel Gorenstein said Bankman-Fried would require “strict” supervision following his release to his parents’ home in California.”

His parents, both Stanford Law professors, were present in the courtroom. Bankman-Fried was flanked by two U.S. marshals, dressed in a suit and tie.”

He did not speak except when answering the judge.”

Bankman-Fried’s parents are not guiltless in this mess, as these Stanford professors apparently profited off their son, and the current FTX CEO, John Ray (who was also brought in to clean up after Enron collapsed) says that he is looking into what involvement Joseph Bankman and Barbara Fried had with FTX. And now they have put up their house as bail collateral for their son, in order to bring him home to California for the holidays. Wow, what a deal!

He gone.

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) December 22, 2022

I actually think he will make it back to New York City for his next court appearance, despite my inner cynicism, but only reason that Bankman-Fried likely won’t be able to skip bail and flee to another country is that he made himself too famous after FTX’s failure. Those very interviews made him a household name, even for people who don’t understand cryptocurrency. Even shaving his head won’t change his general appearance, and if you’ve ever seen Bankman-Fried give an interview, he has no hope of “blending in” and making himself invisible.

Bankman-Fried is going to do a lot of time behind bars, especially now that his former colleague/polyamorous lover and his co-founder have turned on him to save themselves. He better enjoy this New Year’s celebration, because it’s likely the last one he sees as a (sort of) free man for a long, long, LONG time.

Featured image: FTX Bankruptcy, Common Creative license, Designed by: Ricky Redor, Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0)