By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Maxwell Book
SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 18 – Already there are several civil Non-Fungible Token cases in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
On June 1, 2022 a criminal case was unsealed, charging NATHANIEL CHASTAIN, a former product manager at Ozone Networks, Inc. d/b/a OpenSea (“OpenSea”), with wire fraud and money laundering in connection with a scheme to commit insider trading in Non-Fungible Tokens, or “NFTs,” by using confidential information about what NFTs were going to be featured on OpenSea’s homepage for his personal financial gain. CHASTAIN was arrested this morning in New York, New York and will be presented today in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York."
When he was presented, before U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York Magistrate Judge Barbara C. Moses, Chastain was allowed to leave after signing a $100,000 bond. He can travel throughout the continental US, but urinanalysis was ordered to test for drugs.
On June 15, 2022 Chastain was arraigned before Judge Jesse M. Furman. Discovery includes three phones; there was no post arrest statement. But Chastain's lawyer took the opportunity to ask how it could be insider trader if NFTs are neither securities nor commodities.
On April 17, 2023, Chastain filed an argument in opposition to the US' motions in limine, that he should be able try to convince the jury "that this prosecution is novel and unprecedented," citing a 1984 Second Circuit case, US v. Rosado, about Puerto Rican independentistas.
On April 28, Judge Furman ordered: "as to Nathaniel Chastain on: [80] MOTION in Limine to Exclude Certain Terms (Insider Trading); [73] MOTION in Limine to Exclude "Level Playing Field"; [64] MOTION in Limine to exclude 404(b) Evidence; [69] MOTION in Limine re Summary Charts; [67] MOTION in Limine To Preclude Compensation; [75] MOTION in Limine re Value To Third Parties; and [70] MOTION in Limine filed by USA: Defendant Nathaniel Chastain is charged with wire fraud and money laundering relating to his purchase and sale of Non-Fungible Tokens or "NFTs" on OpenSea, an online NFT marketplace. See ECF No. 1 ("Indictment"). Trial is scheduled to begin April 24, 2023. On April 13, 2023, each party filed multiple motions in limine. See ECF Nos. 64, 67, 69, 70, 73, 75, 80.1 The parties should be prepared to address Chastain's motion to exclude evidence relating to the Larva Labs project (ECF No. 64) at the final pretrial conference on April 20, 2023. (Signed by Judge Jesse M. Furman on 4/18/2023)
Inner City Press will continue to cover these cases.
The case is US v. Chastain, 22-cr-305 (Furman / Moses)
***
Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron.
