Judge Kaplan rejects SBF’s new trial motion, calls evidence baseless

U.S. District Judge Lewis A. Kaplan denied Sam Bankman-Fried’s Rule 33 motion for a new trial on April 28, 2026, and declined the defendant’s request to withdraw the filing before the court ruled.

Bankman-Fried filed the pro se motion around Feb. 10, 2026, asserting new witness testimony from former FTX executive Ryan Salame and an individual identified as Daniel Chapsky would undercut the government’s case. Prosecutors filed an opposition in March 2026, arguing the assertions lacked merit.

In his written ruling, Judge Kaplan said the purported new evidence would not likely produce an acquittal in light of the evidence presented at trial and described the arguments as “baseless on multiple independently sufficient levels.” The judge resolved the motion on its merits after denying the request to withdraw.

On April 22, Bankman-Fried withdrew his Rule 33 motion without prejudice. He wrote he had not been given adequate time to respond to the government’s opposition and expressed a concern about receiving a fair hearing from the judge. Judge Kaplan rejected the withdrawal request and proceeded to rule on the motion.

Kaplan also addressed questions about who prepared the filing. Bankman-Fried denied improper ghostwriting and acknowledged that his mother, Barbara Fried, provided editorial suggestions and helped print the document. Barbara Fried is not a licensed attorney; the judge has previously reviewed filings for potential unauthorized legal assistance.

Bankman-Fried was convicted in November 2023 on seven counts of fraud and conspiracy related to the collapse of FTX and Alameda Research, where billions in customer funds were found to be missing. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison in March 2024. His direct appeal of the conviction and sentence remains pending before the Second Circuit, with oral arguments held in 2025.

A separate request from the defense to have Judge Kaplan removed from further proceedings on bias grounds remains pending. The defense has reserved the right to refile the Rule 33 motion after the reassignment request and the direct appeal are resolved. For now, Kaplan’s ruling ends the district court phase of the new-trial effort and leaves Bankman-Fried’s 25-year sentence and incarceration status unchanged.