The U.S. DOJ said it would continue to seek the extradition of Do Kwon to the United States, fearing that South Korea may give the Terraform Labs founder a lighter sentence for fraud and securities violations.
A U.S. federal judge has delayed the jury trial of former Terraform Labs CEO and founder Do Kwon, who was charged in February 2023 over the Terra UST and LUNA scandal that saw an estimated $60 billion being wiped out of the digital asset space.
The U.S. was in the lead in its race with South Korea for Do Kwon’s extradition, but an appellate court has canceled the ruling, saying the process was irregular.
Montenegro's "top justice official" privately said he plans to send Do Kwon to the U.S., where he is facing charges related to the collapse of the Terra ecosystem, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Following the approval, it is now up to Montenegro’s Minister of Justice to decide which country gets the first crack at Do Kwon, who is currently detained in Montenegro.
Do Kwon's lawyers claim that their client agreed to submit to the deposition, which was requested by the SEC to take place in October, if it would happen in Montenegro, where he is currently jailed.
The LUNA and TerraUSD founder was taken into custody over charges of document forgery, but he will complete his sentence in a month as the time he spent in detention will be considered.
Apart from the extradition battle and falsification charges, Do Kwon is set to be questioned by the Special State Prosecutor’s Office over his relationship with local politician Milojko Spajic.
Prosecutors from the High Court in Podgorica revoked the bail conditions on the fact that it “could not establish the value of their assets just based on their statements.”
The Montenegro prosecutor's appeal revolves around the fact that the bail conditions for Do Kwon and Han Chang-Joon appear to be a slap on the wrist compounded by the flight risk posed by the duo.
Terraform Lab's Do Kwon and Han Chang-joon would be subjected to house arrest under police supervision on a €400,000 (approximately $436,000) bail each.
Do Kwon and his accomplice Han Chang-joon were arraigned before a Montenegrin Basic Court for holding fake Costa Rican passports—both could face up to five years if convicted.
