Montenegro Court of Appeal to rule A court in Podgorica ruled on Thursday to extradite Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, to his native South Korea. The ruling upheld an earlier decision in April by the Supreme Court in Podgorica that rejected a request to extradite the crypto fugitive to the United States. A date for Kwon’s extradition to South Korea has not yet been set.
The August 1 ruling in Montenegro was the latest in a series of protracted legal battles in favor of the ousted cryptocurrency founder. Following a ruling by a Montenegrin high court in March to extradite Kwon to South Korea, The Supreme Court decided to overturn the decision and refer the case to a lower court. in April.
“There was no appeal against the said decision, and therefore the decision of the Supreme Court of Podgorica, in the part where it allows extradition in an abbreviated procedure at the request of the Republic of Korea, is legally binding,” it states. Court statement Thursday.
Terraform Labs, founded in 2018, lost at least $40 billion in market value and led the cryptocurrency industry to collapse in May 2022. Earlier this year, following the collapse of its own cryptocurrencies in 2022, Terraform Labs filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware.
Both the United States and South Korea sought Kwan’s extradition from Montenegro to face charges following his arrest at one of the country’s airports for carrying forged travel documents.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a lawsuit. Kwon and Terraform are accused of defrauding American investors who purchased its digital assets, TerraUSD and Luna, in February 2023. Meanwhile, Kwon is wanted in South Korea on charges of fraud and financial crimes related to the collapse of TerraUSD and Luna in May 2022.
in Statement in March The US Justice Department said it continues to seek Kwan’s extradition “in accordance with relevant international and bilateral agreements and Montenegrin law.”
In this case, it appears that the crypto fugitive will be back to face justice in South Korea.
Kwan was arrested in Montenegro in March 2023 after attempting to travel to Dubai on a fake passport. The Terraform Labs founder was sentenced to four months in prison but remained in custody until his release on bail in March 2024.
To settle a civil securities fraud lawsuit, the now-bankrupt Cowan Corporation Agreed to pay a fine to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of just under $4.5 billionThe deal included a $204 million contribution from Kwon. Terraform Labs also agreed to wind down its operations. Just last month, Announced a strategic sale As part of the ongoing Chapter 11 case.