Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., told Newsmax that the Justice Department's decision to charge former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried before his planned House testimony is "suspicious."
During a Tuesday "Spicer & Co. appearance," the congressman explained that a prosecutor's "dream" would be that Bankman-Fried testifies under oath for potential future perjury cases.
"So, why did this indictment come down less than 24 before he was to testify? Steil queried, given Bankman-Fried's massive $37 million sum spent in the 2022 midterms on largely Democratic candidates.
"Millions of Americans out their money and trust with FTX only to find out that it was swindled by Mr. Bankman-Fried," he continued. "Ultimately, people are going to have to be held accountable for the actions that took place in this situation."
Steil further criticized the likely reasons for the Justice Department's move, including the argument Bankman-Fried could have been a "flight risk."
"I think the American people were really let short. Because they should have been able to hear directly from Mr. Bankman-Fried as to what went on."
Bankman-Fried's planned speech to Congress was leaked to Forbes before Steil's interview, showing that the crypto billionaire attempted to blame the FTX fallout on a negative public relations campaign by competitor Binance.
It's just one day after the U.S. government arrested Bankman-Fried in the Bahamas, in line with a charge from the Southern District of New York authorized by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
According to The New York Times, the criminal charges against Bankman-Fried include wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, securities fraud, securities fraud conspiracy, and money laundering.
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