BELGRADE: Montenegro stated on Friday (Dec 27) it should extradite to the US cryptocurrency specialist Do Kwon, who can also be needed by Seoul for the multi-billion-dollar chapter of his firm, Terraform Labs.
His attorneys denounced the choice as opposite to European conventions on extradition, and stated they’ll enchantment to the nation’s constitutional court docket and to the European Courtroom of Human Rights.
For months, Seoul and Washington have been looking for the South Korean’s extradition for his suspected function in a fraud linked to his firm’s failure, which worn out about US$40 billion of traders’ cash and shook world crypto markets.
Montenegrin Justice Minister Bojan Bozovic “issued a call approving the extradition of the accused, Kwon Do Hyung, to the US of America,” the justice ministry stated, referring to him by his full title.
The choice adopted a yr and a half of court docket rulings and subsequent reversals concerning his extradition.
“It was concluded that almost all of the standards prescribed by regulation favour the extradition request” from the US, the ministry added in an announcement.
Crypto tycoon Do Kwon was arrested in March 2023 on the airport in Podgorica, the Montenegrin capital, whereas making ready to board a flight to Dubai, and a faux Costa Rican passport was present in his possession.
Earlier than his arrest, he had been on the run for months, fleeing South Korea and later Singapore, earlier than his firm went bankrupt in 2022.
“STABLECOIN” COLLAPSE
After a sequence of rulings by the Montenegrin courts, approving after which cancelling extradition requests, the nation’s constitutional court docket lifted the ultimate hurdle on Tuesday.
It stated in a ruling that earlier proceedings “ensured the appellant’s proper to a good trial and didn’t elevate issues a few potential violation of the proper to household life”.
The court docket additionally stated that Do Kwon, in the course of the listening to, “personally consented to expedited extradition to each the Republic of South Korea and the US”.
Do Kwon’s Montenegrin attorneys, Marija Radulovic and Goran Rodic, stated they’ve requested each the nation’s constitutional court docket and the European Courtroom of Human Rights to difficulty stays in opposition to the extradition.
The attorneys additionally stated the justice ministry had initially delayed delivering the precise resolution to them in an try to forestall the appeals.
Montenegro had already deported Do Kwon’s enterprise associate – recognized solely by his initials J.C.H. – to South Korea in early February.
Terraform Labs created a cryptocurrency referred to as TerraUSD that was marketed as a “stablecoin”, a token that’s pegged to secure belongings such because the US greenback to forestall drastic fluctuations.
Do Kwon efficiently marketed them as the following massive factor in crypto, attracting billions in investments and world hype.
Media experiences in South Korea described him as a “genius”.
However regardless of billions in investments, TerraUSD and its sister token Luna went right into a loss of life spiral in Could 2022.
Specialists stated Do Kwon had arrange a glorified Ponzi scheme, during which many traders misplaced their life financial savings.
He left South Korea earlier than the crash and spent months on the run.
In January, Terraform Labs formally sought chapter safety within the US.
The chapter submitting would permit Terraform “to execute on its marketing strategy whereas navigating ongoing authorized proceedings, together with consultant litigation pending in Singapore and US litigation involving the Securities and Alternate Fee”, the corporate stated in an announcement.
It stated it additionally meant to “meet all monetary obligations to staff and distributors”.
Cryptocurrencies have come underneath growing scrutiny from regulators after a string of controversies in recent times, together with the high-profile collapse of the trade FTX.
