Court Issues Verdict on Do Kwon’s Extradition

Eight months after his arrest, a court in Montenegro has finally ordered the extradition of Terra founder Do Kwon. Kwon was arrested in Podgorica, the capital city of Montenegro in March, after he was caught trying to flee to Dubai via private jet, and with falsified documents. At the time, Kwon had a fake Costa Rican passport on him.

Although a final decision is yet to be made on his final destination, information on the court’s website suggests that Kwon will be extradited to either South Korea or the United States. That is after he must have served an ongoing four-month prison sentence in the country.

Kwon did attempt to appeal previous decisions, but the Montenegro High Court upheld his four-month prison sentence earlier this month. The court deemed the sentence appropriate for both  Kwon and his associate Han Chang-Joon.

After his prison term, the Justice Minister of Montenegro will then have the final say regarding where Kwon will be taken next.

Do Kwon Awaits

Kwon has been on the radar of both the United States and South Korea. The duo states want him for his role in the collapse of the Terra ecosystem in 2022. As of the time that the ecosystem capitulated, it had at least $40 billion in investor money in it.

Do Kwon faces multiple fraud-related and civil allegations from US federal prosecutors. That includes the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Justice Department. Whereas, South Korea also wants his head as they seek to serve justice for the Terra crash. Kwon reportedly committed most of his crimes in South Korea, and potentially faces up to 40 years in prison should he be extradited there.

In April, Daniel Shin, co-founder of Terraform Labs, was also found in violation of South Korean capital markets laws. While prosecutors have moved to freeze $185 million in assets, Shin has since denied playing any role in the events leading to the crash. He claims to have left the company,  at least, two years before the incident.