Ex-congressional candidate and FTX executive's romantic partner indicted on campaign finance charges
A one-time congressional candidate and romantic partner of a convicted FTX executive has been arrested on campaign finance charges
NEW YORK — A one-time candidate for Congress in New York was arrested Thursday on charges that she schemed with her domestic partner, an executive at the collapsed FTX cryptocurrency exchange, to use the company's money to illegally fund her campaign.
Michelle Bond, 45, of Potomac, Maryland, was released on $1 million bail after a brief court appearance in Manhattan federal court to face charges that she conspired with Ryan Salame, the ex-CEO of FTX Digital Markets, to cause unlawful campaign contributions in connection with her unsuccessful run in a Republican primary on eastern Long Island in 2022.
Her lawyer did not immediately comment. A spokesperson for prosecutors did not return a request for comment.
The charges constitute another twist in the story of the downfall of FTX, which was one one of the world's most popular crytpo trading platforms before it fell apart in an avalanche of allegations against its founder, Sam Bankman-Fried.
Salame pleaded guilty last year to campaign finance and illegal money-transmitting charges in connection with his work for the company and was sentenced in May to 7 1/2 years in prison.
The day before Bond's arrest, Salame asked a judge to nullify his guilty plea, saying prosecutors had suggested that Bond would not be arrested if he entered the plea and concluded his case.
Salame said in court papers that he has satisfied all the requirements of his plea deal, including paying $500,000 in fines, $6 million in forfeiture and $5.5 million in restitution. He described Bond as his domestic partner and the mother of his 8-month-old child.
Bond was charged
Read more on abcnews.go.com
