- Sam Bankman-Fried is being held at a prison in Nassau that is known for its harsh conditions.
- His relatives called the prison to see if he could receive vegan food, a source told Bloomberg.
- Bankman-Fried’s lawyer previously cited his vegan diet as a reason he should be released on bail.
Sam Bankman-Fried is being held at a prison in the Bahamas that is notorious for harsh conditions, but according to Bloomberg, his family is still hoping his dietary preferences can be met.
The founder of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX is set to remain at the Fox Hill correctional center in Nassau until February after a judge on Tuesday denied him bail and ordered that he remain in custody while awaiting extradition to the US. Bankman-Fried was arrested by authorities in the Bahamas after US officials charged him with multiple counts, including fraud and money laundering.
Sources told Bloomberg Bankman-Fried has his own room in a maximum security area of Fox Hill, and that he’s unable to have visitors due to COVID-19 protocol. One source told the outlet relatives of Bankman-Fried called the prison on Tuesday to ask if he could receive vegan meals.
Reports on Fox Hill have described the prison as overcrowded and understaffed. Inmates at the prison have said they had to remove human waste with buckets and lived among infestations of rats and maggots, according to a 2021 human rights report compiled by the State Department. Inmates have also said they had long waits in between receiving meals.
Lawyers for Bankman-Fried tried to use his vegan diet as a reason he should be released while awaiting extradition, CoinDesk reported Tuesday. They asked the court to consider releasing him on a $250,000 bail so he could maintain his vegan diet and stick to his medications, including Adderall and Zyrtec.
It was unclear which of Bankman-Fried’s relatives may have called the prison about supplying him with vegan food, but the former CEO’s parents, who are Stanford law professors, were in attendance at his hearing in the Bahamas on Tuesday. According to CoinDesk, his mother laughed during the hearing when he was called a “fugitive.”
His other notable family members include his brother, Gabriel Bankman-Fried and his aunt, Linda Fried, who is the dean of the public-health school at Columbia University.
