Lawyer Argues Jury Saw 'Half the Picture' in Sam Bankman-Fried's Conviction Appeal

Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyer has appealed his conviction, arguing that the jury didn't see critical evidence. The appeal claims the judge's decisions misrepresented FTX's financial state, leading to a false narrative. Despite high barriers for overturning convictions, Bankman-Fried's legal team hopes to reverse the 25-year sentence.

Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyer argued in an appeal that the jury only saw 'half the picture' in his conviction for stealing billions from customers of his FTX cryptocurrency exchange. The appeal brief, filed on Friday, contends that Judge Lewis Kaplan erroneously excluded key evidence that could have shown FTX had sufficient funds.

In the 102-page brief to the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, lawyer Alexandra Shapiro stated that the exclusion led to the government presenting a 'false narrative.' She urged the court to overturn both the conviction and the 25-year prison sentence, arguing that customers, lenders, and investors were misled to believe their funds were permanently lost.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney's office in Manhattan declined to comment on the appeal. Criminal defendants generally face a high bar in overturning convictions, needing to prove significant judicial errors impacted the verdict. The case follows FTX's 2022 bankruptcy and accusations that Bankman-Fried misused $8 billion to cover losses at Alameda Research.

(With inputs from agencies.)