Former NFL Investor’s Lawyers Seek to Withdraw From Crypto ‘Shadow Banking’ Case

Lawyers of embattled former NFL player and investor Reginald Fowler have filed a motion to withdraw as his representative counsel in a case over alleged illegal cryptocurrency operations.

• In a court document filed Monday, no definitive reason was given for the motion due to attorney-client privilege.
• However, Fowler's lawyers James McGovern and Michael Hefter of law firm Hogan Lovells cited Local Civil Rule 1.4, which states an attorney for a party may be allowed a court order to withdraw for a "satisfactory reason."
• According to the motion, filed in the U.S. Southern District Court of New York, McGovern and Hefter have informed Fowler multiple times that they wished to withdraw since Feb. 26, 2020.
• They asked the court to delay deadlines in the case to allow Fowler's new representation to get up to speed with the case.
• Fowler is one of two individuals accused of running a “shadow banking” service for cryptocurrency exchanges. The other individual, Ravid Yosef, remains at large.
• Allegedly acting under the guise of processing real estate transactions, the pair opened bank accounts with various financial institutions to illegally store funds on behalf of cryptocurrency exchanges.
• Crypto Capital the "shadow bank" Fowler stands accused of operating is allegedly tied up in an $850 million black hole of crypto funds that went missing from the Bitfinex exchange in 2019.
• In October, Fowler was said to be considering reopening plea bargain talks.

See also: Prosecutors Detail ‘Shadow Bank’ Accounts in Fowler Crypto Case

See the court document in full below: