Connect with us

Published

1 year ago

on

Convicted FTX fraudster Sam Bankman-Fried has been doling out crypto investment tips to jail guards at the notorious Brooklyn federal facility while he awaits sentencing, according to a report.

The disgraced crypto whiz kid — who faces more than 100 years in prison after being found guilty of fraud and money laundering last year — has been telling guards at the Metropolitan Detention Center to buy Solana, The New York Times reported.

The blockchain platform’s value has jumped 8% this year, giving it a market cap of more than $57 billion.

Its digital coin, called SOL, was selling for $130 on Thursday, up more than 10%.

Bankman-Fried’s stock tip comes as the world’s most popular digital currency, bitcoin, blew past $60,000 for the first time in two years on Wednesday.

As of Thursday, it was trading at $62,315 — within range of its late 2021 record high just under $69,000.

Bankman-Fried has also been using his time behind bars to work on his case, according to the Times.

His lawyers plan to argue in court that their client deserves leniency because FTX had enough assets to make their customers whole again.

Bankman-Fried’s mother, Stanford Law professor Barbara Fried, said in court papers that her son’s place on the autism spectrum puts him in “extreme danger” in prison due to the fact that he has trouble reading social cues.

Bankman-Fried was arrested after authorities said he used $8 billion worth of customer funds to cover risky bets made by his hedge fund.

On Tuesday, his attorneys filed a memo in Manhattan federal court in which they ask for a sentence between five and a quarter and six-and-a-half years.

Marc Mukasey, one of Bankman-Fried’s attorneys, called a 100-year guidelines range calculated by probation officers “barbaric”, saying it was based partly on a faulty assertion that FTX’s customers lost billions.

He pointed to the bankrupt company’s recent assertion that it expected to repay all customers in full to back up the argument that Bankman-Fried did not set out to steal.

Bankman-Fried was “deeply, deeply sorry” for “the pain he caused over the last two years,” according to the memo.

“His sole focus after the collapse of FTX was making customers whole.”

Lawyers for Bankman-Fried pressed their case for leniency by including a character letter written on their client’s behalf by Carmine Simpson, a 29-year-old former NYPD cop who was arrested three years ago for allegedly soliciting child pornography.

According to Simpson, MDC inmates are secretly working with the feds to extort and harass the disgraced FTX mogul.

Simpson urged US District Court Judge Lewis A. Kaplan to show leniency toward Bankman-Fried, who has been relegated to eating weekly meals of undercooked rice, a scoop of disgusting-looking beans and week-old brown lettuce.

Simpson described the conditions at MDC as cruel and inhumane.

Last week, a bearded Bankman-Fried was pictured alongside a former Bloods gang member in the first jailhouse photo of the disgraced crypto kingpin after he was convicted of fraud.

Bankman-Frieds wealth was estimated in the billions before FTX imploded.

He pleaded not guilty and is expected to appeal his conviction and sentence.

Bankman-Fried acknowledged making mistakes running FTX, but testified at trial that he never intended to steal customer funds.

Kaplan is set to sentence the former billionaire, who turns 32 next week, on March 28.

The Post has sought comment from Bankman-Fried.

Related Topics:
Continue Reading

Science

SpaceX Launches 26 New Starlink Satellites, Expands Global Internet Network

Published

2 hours ago

on

June 13, 2025

By

SpaceX Launches 26 New Starlink Satellites, Expands Global Internet Network

SpaceX just aced another launch of its Starlink internet satellites. On Thursday night (June 12), the company launched 26 new Starlink spacecraft to join its ever-growing internet megaconstellation in orbit. Flying from Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base, the launch occurred at 9:54 p.m. EDT (6:54 p.m. PDT or 0154 GMT) on June 13. The satellites are planned to be deployed into orbit from the second stage about one hour and one minute after liftoff. This accomplishment brings to more than 7,600 the number of active satellites for SpaceX’s Starlink.

As per SpaceX’s official update for its 15-6 mission, the rocket’s first-stage booster, known as B1081, flew for the 15th time after 14 prior flights. It successfully touched down on the droneship Of Course I Still Love You in the Pacific Ocean, off the coast of southern California, yet again. The company’s current record for reflight of Falcon 9 boosters is 28 flights, proving itself at the same time to be the best at orbital launch efficiency.

Thursday’s mission marks the 72nd Falcon 9 launch, with 53 of those dedicated to the Starlink network. The system aims to provide high-speed internet access around the world, and an increasing number of satellites provide direct-to-cell services for texting and a limited data connection on certain kinds of smartphones and through certain carriers.

Elon Musk’s SpaceX continues to add satellites to the Starlink constellation to increase redundancy and coverage, particularly in remote areas. The current constellation has wide coverage of the Earth, allowing small satellite dishes and mobile phones to connect to the internet in real time in dozens of countries.

SpaceX is simultaneously expanding the reach of Starlink and laying the groundwork for next-generation applications like in-flight connectivity and emergency response communications. With more than 7,600 satellites now orbiting Earth and as many as dozens of additional launches on the docket, Starlink is rapidly redefining how global internet coverage can work in the modern era.

Continue Reading

Science

Aurora Alert! Northern Lights May Be Visible as Far South as New York on June 14

Published

2 hours ago

on

June 13, 2025

By

Aurora Alert! Northern Lights May Be Visible as Far South as New York on June 14

A rare display in the night sky could be visible to skywatchers in the U.S., as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has issued a geomagnetic storm watch for the night of June 14. The moderate G2-level event, fuelled by disturbances in solar wind, might produce auroras visible as far south as New York and Idaho, providing a spectacular light show far beyond the usual polar zones. While it’s welcome news for aurora enthusiasts, experts caution that extended daylight hours due to the approaching summer solstice could limit ideal viewing windows.

Coronal Hole Sparks Geomagnetic Storm; Auroras May Glow as Far South as New York June 14

As per the statement from NOAA’s Space Weather Prediction Centre (SWPC), this increase in geomagnetic activity is associated to a greater degree with a co-rotating interaction region (CIR), a turbulent region where high-speed streams of solar wind collide with slower-moving wind. While these CIRs may not be as dramatic as CMEs, they can still lead to shock waves that rattle the Earth’s magnetic field. The latest CIR was formed around a large coronal hole – a particularly dark region in the Sun’s outermost atmosphere – that is currently facing Earth and spewing high-speed solar wind directly into space.

Coronal holes are allowed to expand and develop into space weather due to reduced density and lower temperature solar wind pressing outward. Forecasts suggest a Kp index of 5.67 on 14 June, so there is another chance for auroras at lower latitudes.

To catch the northern lights, search for dark, clear skies in the hours before dawn, and check in with NOAA’s 3-day space weather forecast, as well as real-time resources like the “My Aurora Forecast & Alerts” app.

The aurora is weather and atmospheric conditions permitting, and should be visible for those based outside of the Arctic Circle viewing it during an approaching storm.

Continue Reading

Science

New Island Forms in Caspian Sea as Water Levels Drop, Russian Scientists Confirm

Published

2 hours ago

on

June 13, 2025

By

New Island Forms in Caspian Sea as Water Levels Drop, Russian Scientists Confirm

Russian scientists have confirmed a brand-new island in the northern Caspian Sea. Satellite imagery from late 2024 first hinted at a sandbank breaking the surface, and a field expedition in mid 2025 verified it. The feature lies about 30 km southwest of Maly Zhemchuzhny Island, on the Europe-Asia boundary of the world’s largest inland sea. It barely rises above the water, and it appeared as the Caspian’s level reached unusually low values. Scientists note the sea has fallen in recent decades (linked to higher evaporation in a warming climate and regional tectonic shifts) and has been dropping again since the 2010.

Confirming the Island’s Emergence

According to a translated statement , in November 2024, satellite images showed a pile of sand and sediment poking above the sea surface. When a Russian research vessel reached the location, scientists saw a flat, sandy patch just above the water. Its surface was damp and crisscrossed by small ridges of sand, but only a few inches higher than the surrounding sea. Approaching by boat proved tricky: very shallow water and foul weather meant the team could not actually land on the new islet. Instead, researchers flew drones (quadcopters) to photograph the site from above. These aerial pictures confirmed the island’s outline and scale. In the field images, the new island appeared as a low, sandy plain with no vegetation.

Environmental Significance and Future Outlook

The island highlights the Caspian’s shifting waters and geology. Scientists have observed that long-term cycles of water rise and fall can expose underwater banks as temporary islands, as seen in the Kumani Bank mud volcano off Azerbaijan’s coast. The island, which could become a nesting ground for seabirds or a haul-out site for Caspian seals, could be influenced by climate-driven water loss and tectonic or volcanic activity. The island’s fate will help scientists understand the interaction between Caspian water levels, climate change, and Earth movements, and what new habitats may emerge when an inland sea shifts its shoreline.

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who’sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.


Stellar Blade Becomes Sony’s Biggest Single-Player Steam Launch Ever a Day After PC Release



HP Omen Max 16 Review: A Good Omen for Gamers

Continue Reading

Trending