Terraform Labs co-founder, Do Kwon, may evade extradition to South Korea for criminal charges after Montenegrin prosecutors challenged the decision and took the case to the country’s Supreme Court.
In an announcement on March 21, prosecutors stated that they have requested protection of legality from the Supreme Court of Montenegro. This appeal aims to halt Kwon’s extradition to South Korea. The request argues that the appellate court violated proper procedure in rejecting an appeal from Kwon’s legal team. It asserts that only the Supreme Court holds the authority to make a legal decision in this case.
Montenegrin courts have been deliberating whether to extradite Kwon to either the United States or South Korea, where he could potentially face criminal charges linked to the downfall of Terraform Labs. Initially, after a decision on March 20, it seemed that Kwon would be extradited to South Korea. However, prosecutors have now suggested that the Supreme Court could issue a verdict that reverses the previous decision.
According to a translated statement from the prosecutors, “[T]he court, contrary to the law, conducted abbreviated, instead of regular proceedings and by exceeding the limits of its powers, made a decision on the extradition permit, which is the exclusive competence of the Minister of Justice.”
Kwon, a South Korean citizen, appears to prefer extradition to his home country rather than the United States. Since the collapse of Terra in 2022, the South Korean government has been imposing severe penalties on individuals involved in cryptocurrency-related crimes. In the United States, prominent figures from the crypto industry, such as Sam Bankman-Fried, Changpeng Zhao, and Alex Mashinsky, have faced convictions, guilty pleas, or are awaiting trial for their roles at FTX, Binance, and Celsius, respectively.
In March 2023, authorities arrested Kwon in Montenegro for using forged travel documents. He was subsequently sentenced to four months in prison and has remained in custody while the country considers extradition requests from the United States and South Korea.
South Korean authorities have also indicted several individuals associated with Terraform Labs, including co-founder Hyun-seong Shin. The company’s former chief financial officer, Han Chang-joon, was arrested in Montenegro at the same time as Kwon but was extradited to South Korea in February.
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