The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reportedly searched the home of Ryan Salame – the former CEO of FTX’s Bahamian subsidiary.
The raid comes several months after the gigantic collapse of the once-prominent crypto giant. Numerous agencies, prosecutors, and failed investors have claimed the exchange committed fraud against its customers, calling upon severe punishment upon its leaders.
Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) – the former CEO of FTX – spent a brief time in a Bahamian jail before being extradited to the US. He currently lives at his parents’ house in California, awaiting a trial at the beginning of October.
- According to a coverage by The New York Times, the FBI raided Salame’s house in Potomac, Maryland, on April 27. However, the reason behind the operation remains unknown.
- Salame joined the fallen crypto behemoth in 2021 to serve as the CEO of FTX Digital Marketing (the Bahamas-based affiliate of the exchange).
- The 30-year-old emerged as a central player in the scandal last year after he told the regulators of the island nation that FTX might have misappropriated billions of dollars in clients’ funds and transferred them to Alameda Research.
- Salame also made the headlines by donating over $23 million to Republican candidates and political action committees.
- For his part, SBF supposedly pumped around $40 million in political donations in the 2022 election cycle, mostly to Democrats.
- The former leader of FTX faces severe charges, including committing wire fraud, conspiracy, and money laundering, after the exchange’s demise in November 2022 triggered multi-billion investor losses.
- If found guilty in the October 2023 trial, he could spend his life in prison.