Rumors circulating among the crypto community on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) suggested that Changpeng Zhao, the co-founder and former CEO of Binance, had been released from prison a month early from his four-month sentence. However, recent reports have debunked this speculation.
CZ Transferred to Long Beach Facility
Contrary to the rumors, Zhao has not been entirely released from incarceration. Instead, he has been moved to an administrative facility in the Greater Los Angeles area, just 38 days before his scheduled release from custody.
Information from the US Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) reveals that Zhao is now under the Residential Reentry Management (RRM) Long Beach field office, overseeing federal offenders in central and southern California.
Zhao’s legal troubles stem from a guilty plea for violating the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) last November. In April, a federal judge sentenced him to a term shorter than what was sought by prosecutors but longer than penalties imposed on other cryptocurrency executives for similar offenses.
Currently serving his sentence in Lompoc II, a low-security federal prison in Santa Barbara County, California, Zhao’s situation contrasts with that of former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, who is serving a 25-year term in New York’s Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC).
Binance Founder’s Legal Journey
Last November, Zhao stepped down as CEO of Binance and accepted a felony charge as part of a settlement with US authorities. The agreement included a $4.3 billion civil regulatory penalty for Binance and a prohibition on Zhao holding executive roles in any cryptocurrency company in the future.
Before his incarceration, Zhao planned to focus on a writing project during his prison term. Despite online speculation, there is no concrete evidence to suggest Zhao was released post-transfer, as the BOP website maintains his release date as September 29.
With a reported net worth of $36.5 billion, as detailed by Bloomberg, Zhao’s imprisonment potentially makes him the wealthiest person ever detained in the US.
As of now, Binance Coin (BNB) is trading at $585 for the first time in nearly a month, before the market crash on August 5. Amid Friday’s market rally led by Bitcoin (BTC), Binance Coin saw a 1.6% price increase. However, the digital asset is still down 18% from its all-time high of $717 on June 6 this year.
Featured image from DALL-E, chart from TradingView.com
