FTX founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (aka SBF) pleaded not guilty to five additional criminal charges this morning, according toCNBC. Prosecutors accuse the disgraced crypto exec of fraud and bribery for conspiring to send at least $40 million to Chinese government officials so they would unfreeze more than $1 billion in cryptocurrency, which he allegedly used to fund loss-generating trades.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (SDNY) unsealed the third round of criminal charges against SBF in a superseding indictment; SBF has now pleaded not guilty to all 13 charges. Additionally, he faces civil charges from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). His attorney, Mark Cohen, claimed he would file a motion that SBF can’t be tried on charges brought after his extradition from the Bahamas in December.

Federal prosecutors allege SBF and his partners tried “numerous” legal and personal methods to unfreeze the funds before moving forward with the bribe. They say SBF directed Alameda Research, FTX’s sister company, to transfer more than $40 million to a private wallet. Of course, it’s illegal for US citizens to bribe foreign officials to generate business. The new charges ramp up pressure on the 31-year-old Bankman-Fried, who reportedly “arrived at the courthouse about an hour before the hearing, looking disheveled after an intense media scrum.”

Three former FTX executives, Caroline Ellison, Zixiao “Gary” Wang, and Nishad Singh, have pleaded guilty to fraud and conspiracy charges and have agreed to cooperate with the prosecution. There’s no word yet on the judge’s ruling about whether SBF will be forced to use a feature phone and limit internet access as part of his bail terms. After it was revealed SBF was using a virtual private network (VPN) and possibly tampering with witnesses, District Judge Lewis Kaplan previously said he didn’t want SBF “loose on his garden of electronic devices.”

Authorities in Canada have arrested an alleged member of the LockBit ransomware gang, according to the Department of Justice. Mikhail Vasiliev, a dual Russian-Canadian citizen, is awaiting extradition to the US, where he is charged with conspiracy to intentionally damage protected computers and to transmit ransom demands. Vasiliev faces a prison sentence of up to five years and a fine of up to $250,000 if he is convicted.

According to the complaint, the LockBit ransomware first emerged around January 2020, and the FBI has been investigating those behind it since March of that year. The DOJ claims LockBit is "one of the most active and destructive ransomware variants in the world," having claimed at least 1,000 victims, including a Holiday Inn hotel in Turkey. The agency added that members of the LockBit gang have demanded at least $100 million in total ransom payments. The gang has claimed tens of millions of dollars from victims, according to the DOJ.

“This arrest is the result of over two-and-a-half years of investigation into the LockBit ransomware group, which has harmed victims in the United States and around the world,” deputy attorney general Lisa O. Monaco said in a statement. “Let this be yet another warning to ransomware actors: working with partners around the world, the Department of Justice will continue to disrupt cyber threats and hold perpetrators to account. With our partners, we will use every available tool to disrupt, deter and punish cyber criminals.”

American authorities are continuing to crack down against insider trading of digital assets. The New York Timesreports that federal prosecutors in New York City have charged three people with wire fraud relating to an insider trading scheme for cryptocurrency, including former Coinbase exchange employee Ishan Wahi. This is the first time officials have levelled charges relating to insider trading of digital currency, according to Southern District of New York attorney Damian Williams.

As with a companion civil case from the Securities and Exchange Commission, prosecutors allege Wahi shared confidential information about future asset listings with his brother Nikhil Wahi and his brother's friend Sammer Ramani. The data, shared between "at least" June 2021 and April 2022, helped Nikhil and his friend buy assets before the listing boosted their value. The two would then sell their assets for a profit. The purchases of 25 or more assets netted a profit of more than $1.1 million, according to the SEC.

Coinbase started an internal investigation in April in response to a Twitter post about unusual trading activity. Ishan Wahi booked a flight to India right before Coinbase was set to interview him, but he and his brother were arrested in Seattle this morning. Ramani is still at large and believed to be in India, the SEC said.

Wahi's lawyers maintained their client's innocence, and said he would "vigorously" defend against the charges. Ramani and the attorney for Wahi's brother haven't commented on the charges. Coinbase said it had turned over information to the Justice Department and had fired Wahi as part of a "zero tolerance" policy for this behavior.

This is far from the largest crypto case. Lending firm BlockFi recently paid $100 million to settle securities violations, while Telegram had to return $1.2 billion to investors for its own violations on top of paying $18.5 million. However, the charges are intended more to send a warning. The government wants to make clear that fraud is illegal whether it's "on the blockchain or on Wall Street," as Williams explained to The Times. This is as much about discouraging would-be crooks as it is punishment for the defenders.

The Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission have charged a man they claim sold insider trading tips on the dark web. Apostolos Trovias allegedly used anonymizing software, pseudonyms (he is said to have gone by the nickname "The Bull") and bitcoin to mask his identity.

According to the complaint, Trovias sold stock information individually and on a subscription basis on defunct black market AlphaBay and other sites on the dark web. He's said to have styled himself as a “hedge fund insider” who worked in a trading branch as an office clerk.

In 2017, not long before authorities seized and shut down AlphaBay, Trovias allegedly sold an undercover Internal Revenue Service agent pre-release earnings report information for at least one publicly traded company. He is facing one count of money laundering (which has a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison) and one count of securities fraud, which could lead to a prison sentence of 25 years if Trovias is convicted.

The complaint was filed in February but kept sealed until after Trovias was apprehended. He was arrested in Peru in May, according to a filing spotted by PCMag, which notes the US Government was working on extraditing him.

Others have been charged or convicted in connection with AlphaBay activity. In February 2020, feds charged Larry Harmon for allegedly running a $300 million bitcoin money laundering scheme. Last September, Bryan Connor Herrell was sentenced to 11 years in prison. Herrell was a moderator for AlphaBay and resolved disputes between vendors and customers. He pled guilty to conspiring to engage in a racketeer influenced corrupt organization.