Key takeaways:
- Do Kwon may not be extradited to the US or South Korea, according to a ruling, which has been forwarded to the country’s minister of justice.
- Montenegrin authorities detained Kwon in March 2023 for trying to exit the nation with forged travel credentials.
Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, may not be extradited to the United States or South Korea, according to a ruling from the High Court of Montenegro in Podgorica, which has been forwarded to the country’s minister of justice.
The decision on Kwon’s extradition and the destination country would ultimately rest with Justice Minister Andrej Milović, according to a report published in the Montenegrin news site Vijesti on April 10.
The reported ruling followed the Supreme Court of Montenegro’s approval of a plea for protection of legality against an earlier ruling by a lower court that would have permitted his extradition to South Korea.
Montenegrin authorities detained Kwon in March 2023 for trying to exit the nation with forged travel credentials. According to reports, he can still travel within Montenegro while judges decide whether to approve a request for his extradition from the US or South Korea, where he would be prosecuted.
Kwon and other Terraform employees were accused of deceiving investors and committing fraud after the platform’s bankruptcy in May 2022. In a civil lawsuit filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), a jury determined on April 5 that the firm and Kwon were guilty of fraud. The co-founder of Terraform Labs may also be charged with a crime in South Korea and the US.
While Kwon’s attorneys continue to file procedural petitions and appeals, his case in Montenegro has been bouncing between courts. It’s unclear if the legal team planned to file an appeal of the verdict from April 10.
Han Chang-joon, the former chief financial officer of Terraform Labs, was extradited to South Korea in February after being detained in Montenegro alongside Kwon. Additionally, several people associated with Terraform, including co-founder Hyun-seong Shin, have been charged by South Korean authorities.
