KEY POINTS
- Kennedy Jr. is not at all surprised with the DOJ's decision not to pursue six additional charges against Bankman-Fried
- He mentioned about the 'bigger problem' of 'how normalized corruption has become'
- Kennedy Jr. is a vocal Bitcoin supporter
U.S. presidential contender Robert F. Kennedy Jr. weighed in and shared his opinion on what he thinks is the reason behind the recent decision of the Department of Justice (DoJ) to drop six charges against the disgraced crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried.
Last week, prosecutors decided not to pursue additional charges against Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of the fallen crypto empire FTX who was found guilty of seven counts of fraud in November.
Several crypto personalities were not only disappointed by the DoJ's decision but also enraged with some labeling the move as a "miscarriage of justice."
Kennedy Jr., a known Bitcoin supporter and holder, weighed in on the issue and shared his opinion via the social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
For the independent presidential candidate, the DoJ's decision is not at all surprising and called it an even bigger problem than fraud itself.
According to him, the decision not to pursue six additional charges against Bankman-Fried is a reflection of how corruption has become normalized.
"No one is even surprised. THAT is a bigger problem than the fraud itself. It shows how normalized corruption has become," Kennedy Jr. said in a post on X.
No one is even surprised. THAT is a bigger problem than the fraud itself. It shows how normalized corruption has become. https://t.co/g9QrScuCJx
— Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) December 31, 2023
Bankman-Fried was expected to be prosecuted on six additional charges in a separate trial.
These additional charges include unlawful political campaign contributions, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, substantive securities and commodities fraud, and conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money-transmitting business. Further, an additional charge of conspiracy to bribe foreign officials was added following a superseding indictment in March.
"The government respectfully submits this letter to provide notice to the court and the defendant that it does not plan to proceed with a second trial in the above-captioned matter," prosecutors said in a court filing last Friday.
Crypto Law founder John Deaton raised the question of why was the "case being dropped in an election year" and cited Caroline Ellison's testimony in Bankman-Fried's fraud trial where she revealed that the crypto mogul gave $10 million to the Biden Administration.
"Ask yourself why is this case being dropped in an election year? During the fraud trial Caroline Ellison testified that SBF gave the Biden Administration $10 Million and the reason he told her was to "buy access." He got two personal meeting with @GaryGensler, and several others with SEC staff. He got to speak to @CFTCbehnam, @RepMaxineWaters and others on the FSC. Who did he get to meet on the Senate Banking Committee? @ewarren@SenSherrodBrown did you also have meetings? What a joke the DOJ has become," Deaton said in a post on X.
Ask yourself why is this case being dropped in an election year? During the fraud trial Caroline Ellison testified that SBF gave the Biden Administration $10 Million and the reason he told her was to “buy access.” He got two personal meeting with @GaryGensler, and several others… https://t.co/f4KL5MJgwb
— John E Deaton (@JohnEDeaton1) December 30, 2023
It is a known fact the Bankman-Fried was among the top donors to Democrats in the past election cycle, shelling out over $40 million via super political action committees (PACs) and direct contributions.
He also claimed to have given "about the same amount of money" to Republicans and shared that the millions in donations that went to the political party went unnoticed because all of his donations were "dark money."
