NASSAU, Bahamas—FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried inched closer to being transferred into U.S. custody to face criminal charges related to the cryptocurrency exchange’s collapse, after a chaotic court hearing here Monday in which his local lawyer appeared at odds with his U.S. legal team.
Mr. Bankman-Fried has agreed to be extradited, according to a person familiar with the matter, and plans were being fleshed out by his legal team after the day’s court proceedings. Mr. Bankman-Fried’s lawyers hope to have a new hearing on the matter as early as Tuesday, the person said.
Jerone Roberts, who represents Mr. Bankman-Fried in the Bahamas, agreed to draft the necessary documents after having a conference call with the former chief executive and his U.S. lawyers, the person said.
Over the weekend, people familiar with the matter said Mr. Bankman-Fried was planning to consent to extradition to the U.S. but cautioned that his legal plans were still in flux and could change.
Monday’s hearing suggested Mr. Bankman-Fried’s U.S. lawyers and Mr. Roberts weren’t in perfect alignment. Mr. Roberts told Magistrate Judge Shaka Serville that he was surprised to see his client in court.
“Whatever trail that got him here this morning, it did not involve me,” Mr. Roberts said.
Franklyn Williams, of the Bahamas Department of Public Prosecutions, said in court that a U.S. lawyer for Mr. Bankman-Fried had contacted his office over the weekend.
“We understood that Mr. Bankman-Fried intended to waive his extradition,” Mr. Williams said.
Mr. Roberts said he was unaware of that development. He said he needed documents, including the U.S. indictment, to review with Mr. Bankman-Fried before his client could make a decision on whether to waive any objection to his transfer to the U.S.
Judge Serville granted a request for Mr. Bankman-Fried and Mr. Roberts to confer with the former executive’s U.S. lawyers.
Mr. Bankman-Fried was later escorted back to jail by a caravan of armed police officers and jail officials.
Mr. Bankman-Fried was dressed in a navy blue blazer with an untucked white shirt, one of his knees bouncing up and down throughout the proceeding. He spoke briefly to answer the judge’s questions and during the exchange was told by a court officer to stand up straight.
Mr. Bankman-Fried, 30 years old, was indicted last week on eight criminal counts, including fraud and conspiracy offenses. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan accused him of stealing billions of dollars of FTX customers’ funds for his personal use and to repay loans owed by Alameda Research, his crypto hedge fund. He also defrauded lenders and investors by concealing his misuse of customer funds, prosecutors said.
According to prosecutors, Mr. Bankman-Fried also made illegal political contributions funded by Alameda, disguising the true source of the funds to evade reporting requirements and contribution limits.
Mr. Bankman-Fried has said he bore responsibility for FTX’s collapse but has denied he committed any fraud.
Personnel from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the State Department attended Monday’s hearing. FBI agents would accompany Mr. Bankman-Fried to the U.S. in a government aircraft.
Mr. Bankman-Fried has been in custody since his arrest a week ago and has been held at Fox Hill Prison, a Bahamas facility that has faced criticism for its conditions in the past.
If and when Mr. Bankman-Fried arrives in the U.S., he will likely appear in federal court in New York, where he would be arraigned and expected to enter a plea. He is likely to initially be held in a federal jail, although his lawyers could make an application for him to be released on bail.
His case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams, a former federal prosecutor in Manhattan who joined the court in 2012 after being nominated by President Barack Obama.
