Ryan Salame, a former top executive at FTX, is attempting to withdraw his guilty plea in a criminal case related to campaign finance and money-transmitting crimes. Salame claims that prosecutors have not upheld their promise to stop investigating his fiancée, Michelle Bond, as part of the plea deal.
Salame's Appeal
On August 21, Salame filed a petition for a 'writ of coram nobis,' a legal order that allows a court to correct a previous judgment, seeking relief from his earlier guilty plea. In September 2023, Salame had pleaded guilty to two felony charges. However, he now alleges that the government led him to believe they would halt their investigation into Bond if he agreed to plead guilty. Despite this assurance, the investigation into Bond has reportedly resumed. Salame argues that the government should either drop any charges against Bond or allow him to retract his guilty plea. He further claims that the prosecutors used improper and coercive tactics by leveraging his relationship with Bond to secure his plea, and thus, his conviction should be overturned.
Case Background
Salame was sentenced to 7.5 years in prison in May for conspiracy related to unlawful political contributions and operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business. He is set to begin his sentence on October 13 and has been ordered to pay over $6 million in forfeiture and more than $5 million in restitution. Federal prosecutors had investigated Bond, a former congressional candidate, in 2023 for campaign finance violations related to her 2022 run for Congress. They examined the financial contributions Salame made to her campaign, as well as loans she provided to support her candidacy.
Prosecutors' Investigation
Salame is now fighting for either a dismissal of charges against his partner or a chance to revisit his plea agreement, arguing that the government should honor its initial commitments. In a post on X on August 22, he expressed his anxiety about the filing, noting that he fears further government scrutiny. He tweeted, “Government replied – my submission is SELF-SERVING?? The opposite, lock me up, just abide by the promise you know you made if I agreed.”
Salame's case raises questions about the fairness and ethics in plea negotiation processes. How the court will address these arguments will become clear in the near future.
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