Braden John Karony, the CEO of SafeMoon, is attempting to dismiss the case against him and his company by citing a directive from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) that no longer pursues certain cryptocurrency charges. Karony's lawyer, Nicholas Smith, stated in a letter to New York Federal Court Judge Eric Komitee on April 9 that the court should consider the memorandum issued by Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche on April 7, which announced the dissolution of the DOJ's cryptocurrency enforcement division. In the memorandum, Blanche indicated that the DOJ would no longer pursue litigation or enforcement actions aimed at imposing a regulatory framework on digital assets. Smith noted in a footnote of the letter that the DOJ's new directive includes an exemption if parties are interested in arguing that a certain cryptocurrency is a security, but added that 'Karony has no such interest.' The DOJ and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed charges against Karony and other SafeMoon executives in November 2023 for securities violations, wire fraud, and money laundering. The government alleges that Karony, SafeMoon founder Kyle Nagy, and Chief Technology Officer Thomas Smith extracted $200 million worth of assets from the project and misappropriated investor funds. Karony requested to postpone the trial originally set to begin on March 31, citing that cryptocurrency policies proposed by President Trump could impact the case. Later, Smith changed his plea to guilty and admitted to participating in the alleged $200 million crypto fraud scheme. Nagy is currently at large and believed to be in Russia. SafeMoon filed for bankruptcy in December 2023, a month after facing dual lawsuits from the SEC and the DOJ. In March 2023, the company was also hacked, with the hacker agreeing to return 80% of the funds.

Braden John Karony, the CEO of crypto firm SafeMoon, has cited the US Department of Justice’s directive to no longer pursue some crypto charges in an effort to get the case against him and his firm dismissed. In an April 9 letter to New York federal court judge Eric Komitee, Karony’s attorney, Nicholas Smith, said the court should consider an April 7 memo from US Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche that disbanded the DOJ’s crypto unit . “The Department of Justice is not a digital assets regulator,” Blanche said in the memo, which added the DOJ “will no longer pursue litigation or enforcement actions that have the effect of superimposing regulatory frameworks on digital assets.” Blanche also directed prosecutors not to charge violations of securities and commodities laws when the case would require the DOJ to determine if a digital asset is a security or commodity when charges such as wire fraud are available. In the footnote of the letter, Karony’s counsel wrote an exemption to the DOJ’s new directive would be if the parties have an interest in defending that a crypto asset is a security, but added that “Karony does not have such an interest.” The Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission filed simultaneous charges of securities violations, wire fraud, and money laundering against Karony and other SafeMoon executives in November 2023. The government alleged Karony, SafeMoon creator Kyle Nagy and chief technology officer Thomas Smith withdrew assets worth $200 million from the project and misappropriated investor funds. The letter is Karony’s latest attempt to get the case thrown out. In February, he asked that his trial , scheduled to begin on March 31, be delayed as he argued President Donald Trump’s proposed crypto policies could potentially affect the case. Related: OKX pleads guilty, pays $505M to settle DOJ charges Later in February, Smith changed his plea to guilty and said he took part in the alleged $200 million crypto fraud scheme. Nagy is at large and is believed to be in Russia. SafeMoon filed for bankruptcy in December 2023, a month after it was hit with twin cases from the SEC and DOJ. It was also hacked in March 2023, with the hacker agreeing to return 80% of the funds. Magazine: 3 reasons Ethereum could turn a corner: Kain Warwick, X Hall of Flame 

The CEO of SafeMoon cites a Department of Justice directive in seeking to dismiss the case.