Former FTX-tied politician accused of campaign finance crime

An indictment has been announced charging Michelle Bond, the partner of former FTX executive Ryan Salame, with violating US election finance laws.

Former congressional candidate Michelle Bond allegedly funded her unsuccessful 2022 New York House of Representatives campaign with money obtained from an unnamed Bahamas-based cryptocurrency exchange.

According to the unsealed document, filed on August 22, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams alleged that Bond injected at least $400,000 in illegal money into his candidacy through a “shameful consulting agreement.”

Bond was already involved with Salame at the time and was working at crypto exchange FTX, a company founded by imprisoned crypto mogul Sam Bankman-Fried, which was based in the Bahamas and accused of similar campaign law violations.

Federal prosecutors allege that Bond acknowledged his role in financing the exchange’s campaign at a board meeting of the Trade Group. Christia M. Curtis, the FBI’s interim deputy director, added that Bond deliberately misled Congress about the source of the funds and used other tactics to cover his tracks.

FTX’s Salame in long-running lawsuit

The unsealed charges against Bond came shortly after Salame accused the government of breaking a deal that included his guilty plea and a promise to stop any investigation into Bond.

Salame pleaded guilty to conspiracy during Bankman-Fried’s trial in September 2023 and was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison. He now plans to appeal his sentence or request that the charges against Bond be dropped.

Bond was previously under investigation for campaign finance issues related to his 2022 Congressional campaign in New York’s 1st District.

— Molly White @ XOXO (@molly0xFFF) August 21, 2024

Fed’s attack on Salame

Prosecutors responded by describing Salame’s post-conviction social media posts as “completely unrepentant” behavior by America’s legal system.

Salame had posted tweets accusing FTX executives Caroline Ellison and Nishad Singh of lying to get better deals from the government. Prosecutors highlighted those posts on August 21, saying Salame had shown no remorse for his actions.

If you want to see how messed up our justice system is, just look at how little time Nishad and Caroline had after lying to save themselves.

— Ryan Salame (@rsalame7926) August 19, 2024