TLDR
- Michelle Bond’s criminal case is linked to her husband Ryan Salame’s plea deal over campaign finance fraud.
- Salame’s plea deal includes allegations of directing $400K in FTX funds to Bond’s political campaign.
- Bond’s defense team argues her testimony is crucial to understanding the couple’s state of mind.
- Ryan Salame is serving a prison sentence while his plea deal remains a key issue in his wife’s case.
Nearly three years after the collapse of FTX, legal proceedings related to its executives and their associates are still ongoing. Michelle Bond, the wife of former FTX executive Ryan Salame, is at the center of one such case. Bond is currently facing charges related to campaign finance violations, which are tied to her husband’s plea agreement with US prosecutors. This week, she returns to court for an evidentiary hearing that may have significant implications for both her case and her husband’s deal.
Bond’s legal team recently filed a motion requesting that she be allowed to testify, despite objections from prosecutors. The prosecution argued that her testimony would likely not be relevant to Salame’s plea deal, which centers around allegations of campaign finance fraud. Salame is currently serving a prison sentence after pleading guilty to several charges connected to his role in the FTX scandal.
Ryan Salame Plea Deal at the Core of Bond’s Case
The core of the legal dispute revolves around Salame’s guilty plea. In his plea deal, Salame admitted to conspiracy charges, including making unlawful political contributions. Prosecutors allege that Salame directed $400,000 from FTX’s funds to Bond’s political campaign. Bond, who was charged in August 2024, faces multiple accusations related to unlawful campaign contributions, including conspiracy and receiving illegal conduit contributions.
Bond’s defense team argues that her testimony is critical for understanding both her and her husband’s state of mind when entering their respective plea agreements.
“The government has no grounds to pre-emptively bar Ms. Bond from testifying because her testimony is neither redundant nor irrelevant,” her attorneys stated in a recent filing. They assert that her testimony is directly related to the issues at hand and could help clarify the circumstances around the charges.
Bond’s Potential Testimony and the Court’s Response
Thursday’s evidentiary hearing will mark the first time in months that Bond has appeared in court, focusing on her involvement in the case. As part of the hearing, her attorneys have also requested that former Assistant U.S. Attorney Danielle Sassoon testify.
Sassoon, who led the prosecution in the case against former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, could shed light on any promises or inducements made to Salame to influence his plea.
Prosecutors have not opposed the motion for Sassoon to testify but have requested that Bond’s legal team provide documentary evidence or further testimony regarding Salame’s plea agreement. This could potentially impact the ongoing legal battle, especially if Bond’s testimony or Sassoon’s input offers new information that alters the court’s understanding of the case.
