The lawyers complained about overflowing toilets at the MDC, plastic in inmates’ meals, contaminated water, and other horrific living conditions.
On Friday, August 11, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Judge Lewis Kaplan revoked the bail of Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF), the disgraced former CEO and founder of bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX, who had spent three nights at the Metropolitan Detention Center Brooklyn (MDC Brooklyn).
Unfortunately for SBF, the MDC Brooklyn jail is considered one of the worst jails in New York City and is notorious for its poor conditions and abuse of inmates. Judge Kaplan acknowledged that the detention center “does not belong on anyone’s list of five-star facilities.”
SBF detained at Brooklyn MDC
Federal prosecutors sought to revoke SBF’s $250 million bail in July over his alleged attempt to tamper with witnesses. At the time of the plea, the FTX founder was under house arrest at his parents’ $4 million home in Palo Alto, California.
The Justice Department pushed to revoke bail because SBF’s activities, including using a virtual private network to hide his internet activity, violated his bail conditions. The 31-year-old former CEO also contacted FTX’s general counsel to suggest that they outsmart each other.
Worst of all, he leaked the private writings of his ex-girlfriend, Caroline Ellison, former CEO of FTX sister trading firm Alameda Research, to a New York Times reporter. According to the Justice Department’s complaint, SBF sought to paint Ellison in a negative light and make her look like a jilted lover, thereby discrediting her as a witness in the upcoming trial.
MDC Brooklyn. Source: News.Com.Au
One of the worst jails in New York City
After the hearing on Friday, SBF was transferred to the Brooklyn MDC, a U.S. federal administrative detention facility that houses male and female prisoners of various security levels. The center was originally built to house 1,000 inmates and now houses more than 1,600 inmates.
Lawyers have complained about overflowing toilets at the MDC, plastic in prisoner meals, contaminated water, and other horrific living conditions. At one point in the winter of 2019, prisoners suffered for days without heat, electricity, or hot meals due to a power outage. Prisoners who protested conditions were pepper sprayed, put in solitary confinement, and had their toilets shut down.
The MDC has held high-profile figures such as American singer and convicted sex offender R. Kelly, child sex trafficker Ghislaine Maxwell and American rapper Fetty Wap.
Meanwhile, SBF's lawyers revealed they intend to appeal Judge Kaplan's decision. #FTX交易所 #SamBankman-Fried
