The judge forbade Sam Bankman-Fried to use VPN after the former head of FTX admitted to watching the Super Bowl over a private network while under house arrest. This is reported The Block.
“The Respondent’s use of a VPN carries the same risks as the use of encrypted messengers or calling apps. I am hereby amending the terms of release, effective immediately, to prohibit the defendant from using any VPN,” District Judge Lewis Kaplan said in a statement.
In early February, a court banned Bankman-Fried from contacting former and current employees of FTX or Alameda Research.
The founder of the crashed exchange was arrested on December 12, 2022 in the Bahamas at the request of the US government. U.S. prosecutors charged him with eight criminal offenses. The ex-CEO of FTX pleaded not guilty.
The court released him on $250 million bail. The guarantors were his parents and two other unnamed individuals. In January 2023, Judge Kaplan granted the media group’s motion to disclose the latter.
Prosecutors found that Bankman-Fried used the VPN at least twice. This caused law enforcement concerns about his hidden visits to sites without the control of the authorities under the terms of house arrest.
Lawyers for the defendant confirmed that he watched football games on January 29 through the service, as well as the Super Bowl on Sunday. Bankman-Freed got access to the games through an NFL Game Pass subscription, which he signed up while still living in the Bahamas.
This week, the court will consider new bail conditions for the founder of FTX. Prosecutors demanded that they be reviewed after Bankman-Freed’s use of the encrypted Signal messenger to communicate with exchange workers was discovered.
Recall that in January, the US Department of Justice confiscated nearly $700 million worth of assets from the former head of FTX.
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