The founder of Tron, Justin Sun, stated that he is not aware of the recent speculations regarding former Binance CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao. This follows reports suggesting that Zhao provided incriminating evidence against him as part of a plea agreement with the US Department of Justice (DoJ).
“I’m not familiar with the rumors circulating,” Sun mentioned in an X post on April 11. “CZ has been a key mentor and a dear friend throughout my journey as an entrepreneur.”
Sun dismisses rumors about CZ
He further acknowledged, “He has been instrumental in aiding me during my entrepreneurial path.”
Sun’s statement came just hours after speculations intensified following a report from the Wall Street Journal on April 11. The piece claimed that Zhao had agreed to provide evidence against Sun as part of his plea deal, based on insights from sources close to the situation.
Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison in April 2024 for violations related to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) laws.
The report also noted, “This arrangement has not been previously disclosed.”
Image Credit: db
While Zhao has not publicly commented on the allegations, Sun praised Zhao’s character and reiterated that the DoJ is one of the closest and most dependable partners of T3 Financial Crime Unit (T3 FCU), which Tron co-founded alongside Tether and TRM Labs.
“Whether in discussions with CZ or our partners at the DoJ, we always maintain open and honest communication. I trust each of them completely.”
Zhao was released from a US federal prison on September 27. As previously reported, with a net worth of approximately $60 billion, he is the wealthiest individual to have served a prison sentence in the United States.
Image Credit: Justin Sun
In related news, on February 26, both the US Securities and Exchange Commission and Sun asked a federal court to suspend the ongoing case against Sun to facilitate settlement discussions.
In March 2023, the SEC took legal action against Sun and three associated companies, which include the organization behind Tron, the Tron Foundation, the BitTorrent Foundation, and its parent company, Rainberry Inc., based in San Francisco.
Efforts to contact the US Department of Justice for a response were unsuccessful by the time of publication.