A pregnant physician’s assistant, a train conductor, and a retired investment banker are reportedly among 12 individuals who will eventually decide on the fate of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried.
As per a report from Cointelegraph’s on-the-ground reporter Ana Paula Pereira, the 12 jurors were narrowed down from a list of 45 on Oct. 4, the second day of trial in Manhattan.
The potential jurors were each given a minute to introduce themselves by sharing their background, age, employment, education, relationship history, and children.
Cointelegraph reporter Pereira noted that one prospective juror said his wife worked for a law firm that provided services to FTX in the past — though it isn’t clear whether he was selected.
One prospective juror was reportedly excused after revealing she worked for a firm that invested in FTX and Alameda Research, according to Matthew Russell Lee from Inner City Press.
District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan then discussed jury selection with the prosecutors and Bankman-Fried’s defense lawyers before revealing the final 12 jury members about 15 minutes later.
Scenes from outside New York’s Supreme Court — a short walk away from where Bankman-Fried’s fraud trial is being held. Source: Cointelegraph
As per Oct. 4 reports from Bloomberg and TechCrunch, the final list or jurors shows the panel will be female-dominated, comprising nine women and three men.
Their ages range from the early 30s to the late 60s, and their professions span various industries, including health, financial, legal, IT, and education. Five of them are university-educated. The full list of jurors is below:
A man, aged in his late 60’s, was an investment banker at a firm called Salomon Brothers. He completed his Master of Business Administration at Stanford University.
A man, aged 59, didn’t say what he does for work but says his company is currently being sued. It is understood the man has served as a jury member in the past.
A man, aged 61, works at the United States Postal Service. He has no wife or children and has served as a jury member in the past.
A woman, aged 39, currently works as a physician assistant and was once a medical missionary in the Dominican Republic. She’s 10 weeks pregnant, and married to a web developer.
A middle-aged woman, who once studied at Duke University and has experience working with non-profits and managing fundraisers.
A woman, aged 50, works as a train conductor. She’s a mother of five children. Two of the five children have reportedly been convicted of crimes.
A woman, aged 65, is a retired corrections officer.
A woman, aged 33, works as a nurse in Westchester, New York and reportedly studied at the State University of New York, Binghamton.
A woman, aged 40, is currently unemployed as a social worker and previously studied at Princeton University and Columbia University.
A woman, who works at a school in the Bronx, New York. She previously studied at the University of Buffalo and Syracuse University.
A woman, who works in advertising. She has an 18-year-old daughter and a 12-year-old son.
A woman, aged 55, working as a special education teacher in Rockland, New York.
After the jury members were selected, a 15-minute opening statement was delivered by the prosecutors and defense. Testimonies from Marc Julliard — a Coca broker who lost about $80,000 to FTX — and Adam Yedidia — Bankman-Fried’s former close friend — were then heard before Judge Kaplan called it a day.
Bankman-Fried’s criminal trial is expected to take place over six weeks. He is facing seven fraud-related charges for his role as CEO in FTX’s shock collapse in November.
A temporary injunction that would have blocked asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel in Essex has been overturned at the Court of Appeal.
The Home Office and Somani Hotels, which owns the Bell Hotel in Epping, have successfully challenged a High Court ruling. Today’s hearing saw both parties win the right to appeal, before also winning the appeals themselves.
Lord Justice Bean, sitting with Lady Justice Nicola Davies and Lord Justice Cobb, quashed an earlier injunction granted to Epping Forest District Council, saying: “We allow the appeals and we set aside the injunction imposed on 19 August 2025.”
This means asylum seekers will stay in the accommodation in Essex past 12 September. There are currently 138 asylum seekers being housed at the hotel.
Image: Lord Justice Bean delivering the ruling. Pic: PA
Last week, the initial court ruling centred on the change in use of the premises without consent from the local authority.
But after the Home Office argued its case – which involved stating it had the right to appeal – judges have backed the government’s side.
The decision avoids a precedent for other councils to appeal against asylum hotels in their areas.
Council ‘will continue the fight’
A councillor for Epping said the “battle is not over” after the Court of Appeal ruling and vowed the council would “continue the fight”.
Image: Councillor Ken Williamson. Pic: PA
Speaking outside the London court, Ken Williamson, said: “We are deeply disappointed by the outcome of today’s hearing.
“The concern and motivation of Epping Forest District Council throughout has been the wellbeing of our local residents, where we had clarity and resolution, we now have doubt and confusion.”
The council could still be granted an injunction following a full hearing of the legal claim, which is due to be heard in October.
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Reform UK’s deputy leader Richard Tice: Epping residents should feel ‘angry and frustrated’
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage also criticised the ruling, claiming that “illegal migrants have more rights than the British people under (Keir) Starmer”.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch echoed this in her own statement, saying: “Keir Starmer has shown that he puts the rights of illegal immigrants above the rights of British people who just want to feel safe in their towns and communities.”
She also urged Conservative councillors seeking similar injunctions against asylum hotels to “keep going” despite the ruling.
Focal point of protests
Epping Forest District Council had asked for the injunction after the Bell Hotel became the focal point of several protests and counter-protests. It claimed its owner, Somani Hotels, had breached planning rules.
Lord Justice Stephen Eyre, who gave the original High Court decision, had said that while the council had not “definitively established” that the company had breached planning rules, “the strength of the claimant’s case is such that it weighs in favour” of granting the injunction.
Image: Anti-migration protesters in Epping in July
Regular protests have been held outside the Bell Hotel since an asylum seeker housed there was accused of sexually assaulting a 14-year-old girl in July.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, denies two counts of sexual assault, one count of attempted sexual assault, one count of inciting a girl to engage in sexual activity, and one count of harassment without violence.
Image: A view of an England flag outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, after a temporary injunction that would have blocked asylum seekers from being housed at the Bell Hotel in Epping, Essex, was overturned at the Court of Appeal. Picture date: Friday A
After the Court of Appeal ruling, a small number of protesters gathered outside the Bell Hotel carrying England and Union flags, with police officers guarding the entrance to the hotel, which is gated off with metal fencing.
An England flag has been attached to a drainpipe outside the hotel, while England flags have also been painted onto signs and a speed camera outside the hotel.
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