Disgraced crypto boss Sam Bankman-Fried has hired a top private investigator who friends have dubbed a ‘real hound dog’ because he is so relentless.
Bankman-Fried was seen being escorted out of court in New York after being freed on $250million bail by Jimmy Harkins, DailyMail.com can reveal.
Harkins is a highly-decorated former NYPD detective who has previously worked for Calvin Klein, John Gotti Jr and played a cop in the Martin Scorcese film The Irishman.
Despite his formidable size, akin to an NFL linebacker, he is renowned for his big heart and for digging up information for his clients that helps them in major criminal cases.
Harkins also worked for Ghislaine Maxwell. One Maxwell’s lawyers, Christian Everdell, is on Bankman-Fried’s legal team as well.
DailyMail.com can reveal Sam Bankman-Fried has hired top private investigator Jimmy Harkins
Ira Judelson, the famed New York bail bondsman, called Harkins ‘the best at what he does’.
He said: ‘I’ve known Jimmy for 15 years and we work together all the time.
‘He’s a real hound dog. There’s attorneys out there that do some kind of plea deals and some who do trial work. Jimmy does both. He’s out there, he’s a real dog.
‘He has a tremendous amount of resources, he’s very connected with ex-law enforcement and serving law enforcement. He’s very highly respected plus he’s a street guy who can get people on the street to talk to him.’
Bankman-Fried, 30, will need every tool in his arsenal to beat federal fraud charges that he used FTX as his personal ‘piggy bank’ to buy multi-million dollar properties and to fund massive political donations.
SBF was seen being escorted out of court in New York by Harkins after being freed on $250million bail last week
Friends of Harkins have called him a ‘real hound dog’ who is ‘relentless’ at what he does
His bail has been called the largest pre-trial amount in US history and 25 times the $10million posted by Bernie Madoff, the late Ponzi schemer.
Harkins previously worked for Ghislaine Maxwell
Bankman-Fried assembled his expensive legal team despite claiming to only have $100,000 to his name.
Questions about his real wealth were also raised when he was seen flying business class from New York to California en route his parents’ $4million house, where he has agreed to remain until trial.
Harkins’ office is in Robert De Niro’s Tribeca Film Center and he can frequently be seen in the Tribeca Grill restaurant table downstairs having discreet meetings with clients
As well as appearing in The Irishman, Harkins played a ‘burly man’ in the 2020 Ben Affleck movie The Way Back and a police officer in the Sopranos prequel The Many Saints of Newark, according to IMDB.
Questions about Bankman-Fried’s real wealth were raised when he was seen flying business class from New York to California
Bankman-Fried will be under house arrest at his parents $4million home in the San Francisco area while he awaits trial
Ira Judelson, the famed New York bail bondsman, called Harkins ‘the best at what he does’. Judelson is pictured
Judelson, who previously arranged the $6million bail package for Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former head of the International Monetary Fund who was accused of trying to have sex with a Manhattan hotel maid, said Harkins was his choice of PI in New York.
He said: ‘One thing about Jimmy is when you hire Jimmy you get Jimmy.
‘A lot of times when you hire different firms they will farm it out to other people but Jimmy, when I get involved in a case with him it’s always him calling me back. That’s hands on.
‘I trust him completely.’
Among Harkins’ other clients was NYPD shrink Dr. Emily Dearden who was accused of shooting her husband while he slept in their home in Westchester, New York.
She pleaded guilty to first degree attempted assault and was jailed for three-and-a-half years, the majority of which was supervised release.
Dearden had originally been charged with murder and police claimed she was having an affair with another man.
Among Harkins’ other clients was NYPD shrink Dr. Emily Dearden who was accused of shooting her husband while he slept in their home in Westchester, New York
Michael ‘Mikey Cigars’ Coppola, a member of the Genovese crime family, beat a 1997 murder case for killing Johnny ‘Coca Cola’ Lardiere after Harkins found a dusty guest ledger in a hotel room where the killing took place.
In 2016, Harkins’ work led to the discovery of a video that resulted in a judge in Staten Island dismissing murder charges against Richard Gambale in the death of Anthony Perretti.
Gambale pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal weapon possession and was jailed for two to six years despite the court hearing he stabbed Perretti 22 times in supposed self defense when they got into an argument.
Harkins also worked with retired NYPD Deputy Chief Michael Harrington and Deputy Inspector James Grant who were charged with taking gifts and free vacations from shady New York businessman Jonah Rechnitz.
A report about the case called Harkins the ‘go-to guy’ for high ranking NYPD officers when they are in trouble.
Harrington’s lawyer Andrew Weinstein has hailed Harkins’ ‘tireless work ethic’ which in one case helped track down a homeless street vendor whose name was mentioned in a police report then forgotten about.
Harkins tracked him down to an address in Brooklyn and he testified that the real killer had a tattoo on his right arm, pointing the finger at the government’s star witness who had one in the same place.
Thanks to Harkins, Michael ‘Mikey Cigars’ Coppola, a member of the Genovese crime family, beat a 1997 murder case for killing Johnny ‘Coca Cola’ Lardiere after Harkins found a dusty guest ledger in a hotel room where the killing took place.
DailyMail.com’s attempts to contact Harkins and his attorney wre unsuccessful.
