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Braden John Karony, facing a securities fraud charge, requested his trial be delayed in response to Donald Trump’s proposed crypto policies potentially affecting related laws.
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Braden John Karony, the former CEO of crypto firm SafeMoon, has requested a judge delay his criminal trial, seemingly hoping that the Trump administration’s approach to digital assets could result in at least one charge being dropped.
In a Feb. 5 filing in the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York (EDNY), Karony asked a federal judge to push jury selection for his trial from March to April 2025, citing “significant changes” proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission under President Donald Trump.
The SafeMoon CEO’s legal team cited a Trump executive order signed on Jan. 23 exploring potential changes to the country’s regulations on digital assets, as well as a statement from SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce suggesting the commission would consider “retroactive relief” for certain crypto cases.
“Under the current scheduling order in this case, the parties may learn within days or hours of the commencement of trial that DOJ no longer considers digital assets like SafeMoon to be ‘securities’ under the securities laws,” said Karony’s lawyers. “Worse, the parties may learn this during or shortly after a trial, half of whose charges rest on the government’s claim that SafeMoon is such a security.”
SafeMoon CEO’s Feb. 5 filing requesting a new trial date. Source: EDNY
US authorities unsealed an indictment against SafeMoon’s Karony, Kyle Nagy, and Thomas Smith in November 2023, charging them with securities fraud conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy. The trio allegedly “diverted and misappropriated millions of dollars’ worth” of SafeMoon’s SFM token between 2021 and 2022.
This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
