Key Takeaways
- Sam Bankman-Fried’s prison sentence is reduced by over four years due to good behavior and program participation.
- Caroline Ellison received a sentence reduction of about six months, with release expected in May 2026.
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Sam Bankman-Fried may not serve his full 25-year sentence for crypto fraud. According to Business Insider, the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) estimates that his release could come in under 21 years due to credits for good conduct, time already served, and participation in prison rehabilitation programs.
According to the BOP, the federal agency in charge of managing inmates in US prisons, Sam Bankman-Fried may be eligible for release by December 14, 2044, cutting over four years from the sentence he received in March 2024.
The sentence he received was already well below the 40-year term sought by prosecutors and the 110-year maximum under federal guidelines. Still, the prospect of additional time reduction is not entirely unexpected.
Legal experts, including James Murphy, also known as MetaLawMan, previously noted that under federal “good time credit” policies, Bankman-Fried could serve less than his full sentence.
SBF has been sentenced to 25 years in penitentiary.
Next steps.
1. SBF will appeal the conviction & sentence.
2. Effective Altruism crowd will begin a lobbying effort to Biden Admin to pardon or commute the sentence.
3. Federal convicts can expect to serve 85% of sentence. https://t.co/2wlcVmL7sQ— MetaLawMan (@MetaLawMan) March 28, 2024
In the federal system, inmates typically serve 85% of their term, with time reduced for good behavior and participation in approved rehabilitation programs, according to the expert.
The BOP explains that incarcerated individuals can earn up to 54 days of credit per year for good behavior under federal guidelines. Credit is also given for time spent in custody before sentencing, in Bankman-Fried’s case, two months served after his bail was revoked in 2023.
The 32-year-old former FTX CEO was convicted on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy tied to an $11 billion scheme involving the misuse of customer funds through Alameda Research, his crypto hedge fund.
He was initially held at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn before being transferred to FCI Terminal Island, a low-security facility in San Pedro, California.
Caroline Ellison, former Alameda Research CEO and cooperating witness, was sentenced to 2 years in prison but is now expected to be released in May 2026, about six months early, due to the same system.
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