Terraform Labs co-founder, Do Kwon, may avoid extradition to South Korea to face criminal charges after Montenegrin prosecutors challenged the decision and the case may now go to the country’s Supreme Court.
In a statement released on March 21, prosecutors announced that they have requested a protection of legality from the Supreme Court of Montenegro after an appeal to halt Kwon’s extradition was rejected by the appellate court. The request argues that only the Supreme Court has the authority to make a legal decision in this case and claims that the appellate court violated procedure.
Montenegrin courts have been considering whether to extradite Kwon to either the United States or South Korea, where he could face criminal charges related to the collapse of Terraform Labs. Initially, it appeared that Kwon was going to be extradited to South Korea following a decision on March 20. However, prosecutors have now suggested that the Supreme Court could overturn this decision with a verdict of its own.
The prosecutors stated, “Contrary to the law, the court conducted abbreviated proceedings instead of regular proceedings, and by exceeding its powers, made a decision on the extradition permit, which is the exclusive competence of the Minister of Justice.”
Kwon, who is a South Korean citizen, seemingly prefers extradition to his home country rather than the United States. Since the downfall of Terra in 2022, the South Korean government has been imposing severe penalties on individuals involved in cryptocurrency-related crimes. Meanwhile, prominent figures from the crypto industry in the United States, such as Sam Bankman-Fried, Changpeng Zhao, and Alex Mashinsky, have either been convicted, pleaded guilty, or are facing criminal charges for their roles in FTX, Binance, and Celsius, respectively.
In March 2023, Kwon was arrested in Montenegro for using forged travel documents and subsequently sentenced to four months in prison. He has remained in custody while the country considers extradition requests from the United States and South Korea.
South Korean authorities have indicted several individuals connected to Terraform Labs, including co-founder Hyun-seong Shin. The company’s former chief financial officer, Han Chang-joon, was arrested in Montenegro along with Kwon but was extradited to South Korea in February.
Magazine: US enforcement agencies are intensifying efforts to combat cryptocurrency-related crime.