According to a report by Fortune, Sean “Diddy” Combs and Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of the collapsed FTX crypto exchange, are now sharing a dormitory at the Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) in Brooklyn. These two once-prominent figures in their respective fields find themselves in the same facility under vastly different circumstances.
Harsh Conditions At The Metropolitan Detention Center
Sean Combs, a renowned rapper and music producer, was arrested last week on serious charges, including sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. Despite pleading not guilty to these allegations, Combs was ordered to remain in custody without the possibility of bond.
Meanwhile, Sam Bankman-Fried, the former multi-billionaire founder of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has been an inmate at MDC since August 2023. His detention followed a federal judge’s decision to revoke his bail after he leaked sensitive diary entries from his former employee and girlfriend, Caroline Ellison. Bankman-Fried is facing trial related to the spectacular collapse of FTX, which was once valued at over $30 billion. His legal team has voiced concerns over inadequate access to necessary resources for his defense, highlighting that he has been living on minimal sustenance.
Per the report, conditions at MDC have drawn criticism from human rights advocates, who describe the environment as “harsh and limiting.” The facility has faced scrutiny for its treatment of inmates, including a power outage in 2019 that left over 1,600 detainees in alleged “freezing conditions” without access to legal counsel. Reports of excessive force, delayed medical care, and poor sanitation have also emerged from independent watchdogs monitoring the facility.
Combs and Former FTX CEO Share Self-Contained Dorm
Both Combs and Bankman-Fried are now housed in a section of MDC designated for high-profile inmates and those requiring additional protection. This area is described as self-contained and approximately the size of a basketball court, accommodating around 20 inmates with bunk beds. While it is still considered general population, the report highlights that it offers more security than public areas of the facility, and inmates do not access communal spaces like the cafeteria.
The Federal Bureau of Prisons has refrained from commenting on specific conditions or housing assignments due to privacy and security protocols. It remains unclear how long Bankman-Fried will continue to reside in this unit, and his spokesperson has not responded to inquiries regarding his current situation.
In a strange twist, a dorm mate reported that Bankman-Fried has not been maintaining personal hygiene, describing him as becoming “skinny like a toothpick” and referring to him as “a gangster.”
At the time of writing, FTX’s native token, FTT, is trading at $1.36, recording gains of 5.5% and just over 2% over the seven and fourteen-day periods respectively.
