- A federal judge has threatened to impose sanctions on former FTX executive Ryan Salame for allegedly lying during his 2023 plea hearing
- Salame admitted that prosecutors made promises to him, contrary to his initial claim, in exchange for his guilty plea
- The judge expressed concern that Salame’s false testimony could impact the validity of his conviction and sentencing
A federal judge has threatened to impose sanctions on Ryan Salame, the former FTX executive, for allegedly lying during his 2023 plea hearing. Salame admitted that prosecutors had made promises to him, which he had previously denied under oath, a complaint he recently made official before withdrawing it. The admission has raised concerns about the validity of his conviction, with the judge stating he would take time to consider possible next steps, including possible sanctions.
Judge Kaplan Threatens Sanctions
Salame pleaded guilty last year to criminal charges related to the collapse of FTX and in relation to political campaign donations, denying in his testimony for the case that prosecutors had made a deal with him to reduce his sentence. However, Salame has since gone on record to state that prosecutors told him they would cease an investigation into his partner, Michelle Bond, for political campaign finance irregularities if he pleaded guilty, something they have denied.
This has left Salame in a perilous position, with his seven-and-a-half-year sentence now at risk of extension, having revealed that he lied under oath. This was hinted at in a heated hearing on Thursday at a U.S. District Court, where Judge Lewis Kaplan warned Salame of possible sanctions, stating, “You are asking me to let stand a conviction and sentence that I now know is based on false testimony.”
Salame withdrew his complaint, perhaps realising the mistake he had made, but the damage had already been done.
Prosecutors Allegedly Broke Agreement
Salame’s legal team previously filed a motion to void his 2023 guilty plea, arguing that the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office had not upheld its agreement to cease investigating Bond. Despite this, Bond was indicted last month on campaign finance charges related to her failed 2022 congressional campaign, which prosecutors claim was unlawfully funded by Salame through FTX funds.
Salame has since withdrawn his request to vacate his plea, but Judge Kaplan clearly remains unsettled by the inconsistencies in his testimony and has ordered him to surrender himself to prison by October 11.
