Sam Bankman-Fried’s lawyers requested a U.S. judge to instruct legal enforcers to provide the jailed cryptocurrency titan with three suit jackets and trousers to wear to the courtroom in his fast-approaching trial. Some found this request ironic as the former FTX owner and billionaire is known for his laid-back and casual dress code.
Sam Bankman-Fried asks to suit up for pending trial
Even when he met with statesmen such as former U.S. President Bill Clinton, and British Prime Minister Tony Blair, he donned T-shirts and wrinkly shorts. At the height of his career, experts estimated Bankman-Fried had a $26bn fortune in digital assets.
That said, at his first court appearance in December 2022 and the others that followed, the self-proclaimed crypto king made do with a suit. At the last August hearing, he was, however, clothed in prison garb.
Additionally, Bankman-Fried’s legal representatives asked for four dress shirts, three ties, one belt, four pairs of socks, two pairs of shoes, and suitable underwear. Judge Lewis Kaplan, a U.S. district judge, will review the request ahead of the trial, which starts on 3 October. It is anticipated that this trial could go on for approximately six weeks.
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On 11 August, this same judge revoked Bankman-Fried’s $250m bail and ordered his incarceration in the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Centre after alleged witness tampering. As a rule, inmates do not have permission to wear their own clothes. However, judges often allow them to wear professional garments as jurors may be subconsciously influenced by prison outfits.
Bankman-Fried allegedly stole billions of dollars from customers through the now-bankrupt FTX cryptocurrency trading platform. On Monday, his lawyers once again petitioned the judge for his pre-trial release.
