Ex-FTX exec ‘not worried’ about reporting to prison on Oct. 11

Former FTX Digital Markets co-CEO Ryan Salame, who is scheduled to report to a federal correctional institution on Oct. 11 to serve a seven-and-a-half-year sentence, has been making light of his legal situation as the days count down.

Across social media posts since his sentencing hearing on May 28, Salame has hinted that prison will be an “exciting” experience, claiming he would treat his time behind bars as a summer camp. The former FTX executive’s lawyers requested he serve time at the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) Cumberland in Maryland, a medium security facility near Salame’s home. 

Other notable former inmates of the federal facility included Jack Abramoff, a DC insider behind one of the biggest lobbying scandals in the United States. He was released in 2010 after serving three and a half years for fraud, tax evasion and conspiracy to bribe public officials.

As one of the FTX executives implicated in criminal charges after the exchange’s collapse, Salame pleaded guilty to conspiracy to make unlawful political contributions and defraud the Federal Election Commission in September 2023. He was the only individual named in the same indictment as Sam Bankman-Fried who did not testify at the former CEO’s criminal trial.

Salame leaves a partner and child behind

After prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Salame’s partner Michelle Bond in August, the former FTX Digital Markets co-CEO filed a petition to vacate his guilty plea. He alleged that under the terms of his plea agreement, US authorities suggested that they would not pursue an investigation against Bond. She and Salame have a child together.

Related: Judge questions if ex-FTX exec perjured himself in guilty plea

At the time of publication, Bond’s criminal case was ongoing. She and Salame were free on bail, with the latter claiming he was “honestly not worried” about going to prison. 

Salame would be the second FTX executive to face prison following the trial and conviction of Bankman-Fried, who was sentenced to 25 years in March. In September, a judge sentenced former Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison to two years in prison.

Nishad Singh and Gary Wang, other executives named in the same indictment, are scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 30 and Nov. 20, respectively. 

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