Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of crypto exchange FTX, has been granted leave to judicially review the terms of his extradition from the Bahamas to the U.S. after a Tuesday judgment from the Bahamas Supreme Court. Bankman-Fried has been under legal scrutiny since the collapse of his exchange in November, and is facing charges of wire fraud, money laundering, bank fraud, and bribery. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and has moved to dismiss many of them, including the additional charges.
Leave is granted to the claimant to commence proceedings for judicial review, said Bahamas Supreme Court Judge Loren Klein. Klein’s ruling allows Bankman-Fried to challenge the position taken by the Bahamas minister and Attorney General. Klein also added that the review should take place “in an expedited manner,” though said he didn’t want to pre-empt its findings.
Mark Cohen, Bankman-Fried’s lawyer, said he “intends to file an application for judicial review as directed by the Supreme Court and to continue pursuing his legal rights in The Bahamas.” Cohen has previously warned that legal measures in the Bahamas could take “months or years,” pushing them beyond the planned October U.S. trial date, or meaning he doesn’t have enough time to prepare a defense to the extra charges.