Terraform Labs Co-Founder Do Kwon Finally Extradited To The US
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The co-founder and former CEO of Terraform Labs, Do Kwon, was finally extradited to the US nearly two years after being arrested by the authorities in Montenegro. The move comes only days after the country’s Justice Minister Bojan Božović approved the extradition after a long and lengthy process involving multiple courts.
Montenegrin authorities handed over Do Kwon to US law enforcement after months of legal battles over his extradition. The complications emerged from the fact that both the US and South Korea wanted Do Kwon extradited, and they both had the right to demand his transfer to their respective jurisdictions.
However, the Montenegrin authorities eventually decided to deliver the former Terraform Labs CEO to the United States. The country’s Prime Minister, Milojko Spajić, confirmed that Kwon was surrendered to the US custody in a post on X on December 31, and is waiting to face criminal charges.
Spajić stressed that Montenegro welcomes innovation and legitimate crypto, AI, and other tech entrepreneurs, but that it has zero tolerance for fraud, and that the extradition demonstrates the nation’s unwavering commitment to international justice and the rule of law.
Do Kwon Leaves Montenegro After Nearly Two Years In Legal Limbo
Kwon has been in Montenegrin custody since March 2023, after he was arrested using forged Costa Rican documents in an attempt to leave the country and travel to Dubai.
His initial legal troubles emerged in 2022 when the Terra ecosystem collapsed, and the TerraUSD stablecoin lost its value. The same happened to its sister token, LUNA. The collapse erased billions in value, leaving countless investors with massive losses.
The US prosecutors filed charges against Kwon, who disappeared around the same time. Initially, he maintained a strong presence on X, where he kept claiming that he was not on the run, but he refused to reveal his location. Soon after, he was arrested in Montenegro. Now that he has been extradited to the US, however, the country’s prosecutors will be able to continue their case against him, including changes such as commodities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to engage in market manipulation.
While in Montenegro, Kwon spent over a year in legal limbo as his legal team filed repeated appeals which delayed the extradition process. Now, however, the Justice Minister’s decision marked a turning point in his case.
