SBF agrees to gag order after New York Times article raises tampering concerns

SBF was criticized for sharing information related to Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison in an interview with The New York Times, which prosecutors said was an act of witness tampering.

Disgraced FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) will agree to a potential gag order and refrain from making any public statements related to FTX and those involved in the lawsuit, according to Reuters.

Presiding Judge Lewis Kaplan will rule on whether a gag order is required at an upcoming July 26 hearing.

SBF was criticized for sharing information related to Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison in an interview with The New York Times, which prosecutors said was an act of witness tampering.

No Malicious

In a letter to Judge Kaplan, lawyers for the former FTX CEO confirmed that SBF had met with reporters and provided them with documents written by Ellison, but denied the witness tampering charges brought by the prosecution.

The defense said the prosecution's allegations were baseless and that SBF had acted without malice. Defense attorney Mark Cohen said:

"SBF did not violate the protection order, bail conditions, or any law or rule in this case."

SBF will agree to the gag order if the court orders it and will not make any public statements related to the case, the lawyers wrote.

However, they added that the gag order should also apply to the prosecution and all witnesses in the case, including current FTX CEO John Ray.

The lawyers argue that Ray has repeatedly publicly "attacked and defamed" SBF and continues to paint him as a "villain," although the court has yet to rule on the matter.

Ellison's Personal Diary

The New York Times published an article on July 20 detailing in Google Docs some of the entries in Ellison's "personal diary," which he wrote while he was the head of Alameda Research before FTX collapsed.

The excerpts largely detail Ellison's breakup with SBF and her struggles leading Alameda Research, which she wrote were "devastating."

Ellison has pleaded guilty in the FTX case and is cooperating with prosecutors. Since she is part of the "inner circle" of FTX's leadership, her testimony could prove to be a key lynchpin in the case.

Prosecutors argued that the leak of private documents was an attempt to interfere with a fair trial by poisoning jury members to key witnesses.

They said at the time:

"In addition to tarnishing the jury, the effect, if not the intent, of defendant's conduct was not only to harass Ellison, but also to deter other potential trial witnesses from testifying."