Montenegro’s Justice Minister signs order to extradite Do Kwon to US

Nearly two years after Kwon's apprehension, the extradition battle between the US and South Korea comes to an end.

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Montenegro’s Minister of Justice, Bojan Božović, has signed an order to extradite Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon to the US.

Montenegro’s Supreme Court recently determined that all legal conditions for Kwon’s extradition had been met. Following this ruling, the Ministry of Justice evaluated the competing requests and concluded that the US request favored the most legal criteria.

Minister Božović subsequently signed the decree approving Kwon’s extradition to the US, denying South Korea’s request.

In a statement, the Justice Ministry outlined its reasoning, noting factors such as the severity of the alleged crimes, the location of their commission, the timing of the requests, and Kwon’s citizenship.

The decision comes after months of legal deliberation and competing extradition requests from both the US and South Korea. Recently, Montenegro’s Constitutional Court unanimously rejected Kwon’s appeal to avoid extradition, alleging legal issues.

Kwon’s legal team has raised concerns about extradition, claiming that the Montenegrian justice system violated his fundamental rights by refusing to decide on their requests, infringing on their client’s rights to defense and legal remedy.

Potentially end of a lengthy battle

Kwon faces significant legal challenges in the US. In February 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Kwon and Terraform Labs, alleging they misled investors about the stability of TerraUSD and the use of Terraform’s blockchain technology in a popular Korean mobile payment app.

One month later, authorities apprehended Kwon while attempting to travel from Montenegro using a counterfeit passport.

Authorities have charged him with various offenses related to the collapse of TerraUSD and Luna tokens, which caused approximately $40 billion in losses. Additionally, in June, a US court fined Kwon $4.5 billion after failing to settle the civil lawsuit with the SEC.

Meanwhile, South Korea has also signaled a strong interest in prosecuting Kwon. The Appellate Court previously upheld a decision to prioritize South Korea’s extradition request over the US.

However, former Montenegrian Justice Minister Andrej Milović argued that Prime Minister Milojko Spajić used the extradition as leverage for a 30-year concession for the country’s airports with South Korea.

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