Gregory Coleman, a retired Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent involved in the cases of the Bernie Madoff Ponzi scheme and the prosecution of Jordan Belfort, commonly known as the ‘Wolf of Wall Street’, has detailed the best way prosecutors can cope.
FBI agent explains how Bankman-Fried will be prosecuted!
According to Coleman, prosecuting FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) is simple and investigators simply need to track the money and treat the situation as a bad trading situation, he said. (In an interview with Fortune on Dec. 21)
“In a financial crime case, money will always lead you to the bad guys” said.
In this case, the former agent shared a hypothesis, noting that the researchers should look at Alameda Research as an entity that probably doesn’t make any money and takes assets from FTX to cover the bets. Alameda Research is a sister company to FTX, both founded by Bankman-Fried.
‘SBF innocent until proven guilty’
With Bankman-Fried’s extradition to the United States, Coleman also pointed out that the former FTX boss was innocent until proven guilty.
“[SBF]He is just beginning to understand the seriousness and possible consequences of what he is facing. “Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty, but the facts don’t look too good for him,” Coleman said.
Interestingly, Coleman warned that FTX holders may not get some of their money, even as creditors try to buy back the assets. He noted that most of the money will likely come from liquidating assets purchased using FTX proceeds.
According to the retired agent, properties can be tracked if they were purchased via digital assets. However, he acknowledged that tracking digital assets is somewhat complicated.
Indeed, Coleman helped confiscate assets related to the Bernie Madoff scandal, the perpetrator of the largest individual pyramid scheme. He also contributed to Belfort’s takedown by following stocks that revealed the “Wolf of Wall Street” had participated in “pomp and dump” schemes that artificially inflated a stock’s price.
Madoff, Belfort and SBF comparisons
He also compared the three cases, noting that Coleman, Madoff, Belfort, and SBF were likely to launder money.
However, he noted that Madoff’s case was a Ponzi scheme, Bankman-Fried could be equated with embezzlement, and Belfort engaged in securities fraud and manipulation.
Meanwhile, SBF is expected to face prosecution in the United States, with reports showing former FTX executives collaborating with authorities.
Source link
