Terraform Labs co-founder's extradition could be delayed more than 1 month

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Finance

Tue, September 26, 2023 | 05:48

Cryptocurrency

Terraform Labs co-founder's extradition could be delayed more than 1 month

Posted : 2023-03-29 16:41

Updated : 2023-03-30 12:49

Do Kwon, the cryptocurrency entrepreneur, is taken to court in handcuffs, to face charges of forging official documents, in Podgorica, Montenegro, March 24. Reuters-Yonhap

By Lee Min-hyung

The extradition of Do Kwon, the co-founder and CEO of the now infamous Terraform Labs, could be delayed by more than a month, as his legal representative expressed the intent of appealing against the upcoming judgment from the first trial in Montenegro where he is in custody on charges of passport forgery.

Kwon was arrested in the Balkan country last week, and a local court there extended his detention by up to 30 days. He may face a prison sentence of five years on the charge of official document forgery there, according to a recent interview conducted by Yonhap News Agency with Kwon's attorney.

The crypto fugitive has been wanted for almost a year after the value of the Luna cryptocurrency plummeted to near zero in May 2022.

With Kwon facing criminal fraud charges in multiple countries ― such as the United States and Singapore ― attention has been focused on where Kwon will be sent for punishment. For now, authorities from Seoul and Washington are seeking the extradition of Kwon, but it remains unclear when it will occur, as there is a possibility of Kwon facing a prison sentence in Montenegro.

Kwon also established a paper company in Serbia on Oct. 12 when he was on the run. This came about three weeks after Interpol issued a Red Notice to seek the location and arrest of Kwon, according to overseas reports. A document secured by DLNews showed that the owner of the company was Do Hyeong Kwon, the official Korean name of Do Kwon. His accomplice ― surnamed Han who was also arrested along with Kwon ― also put his name down as a member of the board of the company.

The collapse of Kwon's stablecoin Terra and its sister token Luna caused serious losses for investors worth more than 50 trillion won across the globe. Previously, he was considered a rising crypto mogul, as the combined market capitalization of Terra and Luna was the eighth-largest in the world before the abrupt collapse last year.

The U.S. District Court in Manhattan earlier filed an eight-count indictment against Kwon shortly after he was arrested. He also faces charges of crypto fraud worth 80 billion won in Singapore.

Regarding growing public sentiment here that Kwon should be sent to the U.S. for harsher punishment, Korean prosecutors said he could face a prison sentence of more than 30 years here.

"It is hard for us to predict where Kwon will be sent, but Korean authorities will do their best to bring him back to the home country for punishment and confiscate the proceeds of crime," Huh Jeong, a prosecutor at Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office, told reporters.

mhlee@koreatimes.co.kr