Sam Bankman Freed's ex-girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, may not face prison time despite her role in the collapse of digital currency exchange FTX.
Ellison is scheduled to be sentenced Tuesday. Played He played a key role in the criminal case against disgraced former FTX founder and CEO Sam Bankman Freed.
Ellison reportedly lied to investors, stole billions of dollars from FTX's clients, and helped funnel the stolen funds to Alameda Research, a sister hedge fund to FTX that he also ran.
Ellison faces several charges, including:
two counts of wire fraud, two counts of wire fraud conspiracy, one count of securities fraud conspiracy, one count of commodities fraud conspiracy, and one count of money laundering conspiracy. These charges carry a statutory maximum sentence of approximately 110 years, with progressively increased sentences depending on the scope of the crime and the defendant's criminal history.
Former federal prosecutors, trial lawyers and legal experts told CNBC they believe Ellison is unlikely to face prison time.
Bankman Freed was found guilty of all seven criminal charges and sentenced to 25 years in prison, but Ellison accepted a plea deal on all charges against her in December 2022. She has been cooperating with the government, regulators and the FTX bankruptcy estate in the two years since then.
“Her close relationship with Sam allowed her to paint a personal portrait of Bankman Freed, who was certainly an elusive figure, that was probably unique in the government's case,” said Kevin J. O'Brien, a former assistant U.S. attorney in New York who specializes in white-collar crime defense.
Bankman Freed continues to deny any wrongdoing and is seeking a new trial.
In August, a judge ordered FTX to pay $12.7 billion in damages to its customers.
Sean Moran is a policy reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on X Sean Moran 3.
