Former FTX CEO Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried has reportedly been sent to solitary confinement after taking part in an interview with right-wing political commentator Tucker Carlson, which was not approved by prison authorities.
“This particular interview was not approved,” a representative for the Bureau of Prisons told The New York Times on March 7.
Bankman-Fried did not receive permission to take interview
According to a person briefed on the situation, after Bankman-Fried’s interview with Carlson was published, he was sent to solitary confinement at Brooklyn’s Metropolitan Detention Center, where he has been held since August 2023.
The US Bureau of Prisons is said to have strict rules on who can communicate with inmates and how they can do so.
The interview, published on Carlson’s YouTube channel on March 6, has garnered 730,425 views at the time of publication.
Source: Tucker Carlson
During the interview with Carlson, Bankman-Fried talked about prison life since his sentencing and his thoughts on crypto regulation in the US.
Bankman-Fried told Carlson he didn’t think he was “a criminal.”
Bankman-Fried continues appeal battle
While Carlson didn’t directly ask Bankman-Fried if he expected a pardon from US President Donald Trump, he appeared receptive to some Republican ideas during the interview. According to Bankman-Fried, he did not call on any US lawmakers to assist him in 2022 amid pending criminal charges, claiming that he “didn’t want to do something inappropriate.”
In September 2024, lawyers representing Bankman-Fried filed an appeal for his seven felony counts and 25-year prison sentence.
In the 102-page brief, the lawyers claimed that the former FTX CEO was “never presumed innocent,” subject to scrutiny that allegedly affected prosecutors, the presiding judge, and treatment by the media.
This is a developing story, and further information will be added as it becomes available.
