Officials from Montenegro’s State Prosecutor’s Office have expressed dissatisfaction with the bail terms given to Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon and are appealing the decision before the Supreme Court.
Kwon has been charged with forgery and possession of fake travel documents, an offense that could see the embattled founder land up to five years in prison.
The prosecutors appealed against the trial court’s decision to release Kwon and his accomplice Han Chang-Joon from detention. Their appeal revolves around the fact that the bail conditions appear to be a slap on the wrist compounded by the flight risk posed by the duo.
Upon application by the defendant’s lawyers, the court accepted the bail application within 24 hours of filing. The bail conditions to be fulfilled include a bond of $436,000 deposited by both Kwon and his accomplice and the additional requirement of a house arrest.
The order granting bail by the court noted that the bail bond would be forfeited if the duo violated the terms and conditions of the house arrest. Prosecutors filed their appeal within the three-day window provided by the rules, but the decision of the Supreme Court hangs in the balance.
Authorities stated that Kwon would face Montenegrin law before any extradition would take place. Since his arrest in March at Podgorica airport aboard a private jet en route to Dubai, Kwon has been in police custody with the U.S. and South Korea jockeying for his extradition.
The U.S. prosecutors have leveled eight charges against Kwon bordering on securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to engage in market manipulation, among others. South Korean officials argue that Kwon should be extradited to the country because they have gathered enough evidence to secure a 40-year jail term.
“We’ve collected a large swath of evidence pertaining to the TerraUSD case overall, much of which is information that cannot be easily obtained in the U.S.,” an official said.
Kwon’s assets are unraveling
After nearly 12 months of probing, South Korean authorities appear to have struck gold in the hunt for Kwon’s assets. Authorities confirmed the seizure of $176 million worth of assets belonging to the embattled founder, including a luxury Galleria Foret apartment and a fleet of imported cars.
Security deposits and an undisclosed amount were discovered in Woori Bank, while authorities found $7 million paid to a law firm in the weeks before stablecoin TerraUSD (UST) catastrophic de-pegging. It was also revealed that both Kwon and his accomplice registered a consulting company in Serbia and completed the purchase of a $2.2 million apartment.
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