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A jury of 9 girls and three males started deliberating a verdict on Thursday afternoon within the felony fraud trial of Sam Bankman-Fried, the disgraced entrepreneur who has been accused of stealing as a lot as $10 billion in buyer funds from his FTX crypto alternate.
Jurors are deciding whether or not to convict Mr. Bankman-Fried on seven fees of fraud and conspiracy. If they don’t attain a call by Thursday night, deliberations will resume on Monday.
All 12 jurors should comply with convict or acquit Mr. Bankman-Fried on every of the seven fees. If even one juror is just not in settlement, it could end in a hung jury.
Federal prosecutors have accused Mr. Bankman-Fried of taking billions of {dollars} in buyer deposits from FTX to fund investments, political donations and luxurious actual property. The alternate failed final yr, leaving many shoppers unable to recuperate their cash, and turning Mr. Bankman-Fried’s case right into a referendum on the excesses of the unstable crypto trade.
Jurors have sat via his trial for practically a month now, listening to from witnesses together with a few of Mr. Bankman-Fried’s closest associates, who positioned blame squarely on him. On Wednesday, closing arguments had been made by a federal prosecutor, Nicolas Roos, and Mr. Bankman-Fried’s lawyer, Mark Cohen. One other prosecutor, Danielle Sassoon, gave a rebuttal to Mr. Cohen’s remarks on Thursday morning earlier than the jury was instructed on the fees.
In his closing statements, Mr. Roos reminded the jury of the proof and testimony from witnesses who mentioned Mr. Bankman-Fried had directed them to commit crimes. Mr. Cohen sought to painting his consumer as somebody who acted in good religion however made errors. He additionally identified that the prosecution’s witnesses, a few of whom have pleaded responsible in return for leniency, might produce other motives.
Decide Lewis A. Kaplan, who’s presiding over the case, has appeared keen to maneuver the trial ahead as rapidly as doable. He has held the trial on some Fridays, which the jury normally has off, and has been prepared to carry jurors previous 4:30 p.m., when they’re normally relieved.
Decide Kaplan mentioned on Thursday that the jury might keep till 8 p.m. and provided to offer dinner and transportation in the event that they stayed that late.
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