Rodents and Lack of Bathrooms Reported at Bahamas Detention Middle The place Sam Bankman-Fried Is Being Held

Sam Bankman Fried. Source: a video screenshot, New York Times / YouTube

Fox Hill, the Bahamas detention center where former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is being held, is notorious for overcrowding, a lack of toilet facilities and generally harsh conditions.

Bankman-Fried spent the night in jail on Wednesday after appearing in court in the Bahamas on Tuesday. During court appearance, Bankman-Fried was denied bail by the judge and instead was remanded in custody until February 8 at the Bahamas Department of Justice.

Despite his high profile, Bankman-Fried will not receive any special treatment at the facility, Bahamas Commissioner of Correctional Services Doan Cleare said in a telephone interview Tuesday.

Commissioner Cleare said in the interview that arrangements were being made to house Bankman-Fried, at least initially, in the prison’s infirmary.

“He will be in the infirmary for orientation purposes and then we will determine where best to place him,” Cleare said, adding that the infirmary can hold about five inmates.

Overcrowding and “tough” conditions

A 2021 US State Department report described conditions at Fox Hill as “harsh,” with overcrowding a problem. Additionally, issues such as rodent infestations and prisoners relying on buckets for toilets were cited as some of the most pressing issues at the facility.

However, according to Cleare, conditions at the facility have since improved.

“Most of the facilities have been renovated. We have one more to go and we don’t have any rodent issues,” Cleare said in the interview.

However, according to video taken by The Nassau Guardian newspaper in November, many inmates are still living in cells that appear old and overcrowded.

Sam Bankman-Fried was arrested in the Bahamas on December 13 after US prosecutors formally filed criminal charges against him. The government of the Bahamas pointed out at the time that the US government would process an extradition request “immediately”.