What Sam Bankman-Fried’s Long Stretch in Prison Might Look Like

Inmates can make ceramics or crochet at a federal prison in Lompoc, Calif. At a federal prison in Mendota, a few hours away, inmates can have a harmonica or play basketball on one of five facility courts.

Those prisons represent possible landing places for FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, who will in coming months report to begin serving his 25-year sentence, imposed Thursday by U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan.

Kaplan recommended that the onetime entrepreneur be assigned to either a low- or medium-security prison near where his parents live in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

In making the recommendation, the judge cited Bankman-Fried’s low risk for violence and noted that his autism and association with wealth make him a target for other prisoners.