South Korea y United States asked Montenegro the extradition of Do Kwon, the fugitive South Korean founder of the cryptocurrency Moon arrested last week, the Balkan country’s justice minister announced Wednesday.
The founder of the Terraform company is facing fraud charges following the implosion of his company in 2022, which cost investors some $40 billion and shook the markets of cryptocurrencies.
A black future
Do Kwon31-year-old Kwon Do-hyung, whose full name is Kwon Do-hyung, was arrested on Thursday at Podgorica airport along with his financial director, Hon Chang Joon.
“A meeting was held with Korean diplomatic representatives, after which Korea forwarded a request for extradition,” Minister Marko Kovac told reporters, stating that “the extradition of Do Kwon was also requested by United States“.
“We have two countries that have requested extradition. We will see if there is another country,” he added, noting that there could also be a request from Singapore.
“The nationality of the person and other circumstances will be taken into account when deciding,” he said.
According to Montenegrin authorities, Do Kwon and his financial director were in possession of “forged Costa Rican documents” prior to a flight to Dubai.
Inspection of his luggage also revealed forged Belgian documents.
On Friday, a Montenegrin court announced that the two suspects had been charged and remanded in custody for up to 30 days “due to the risk of flight.”
Interpol Notice
Following the arrest of Do Kwon, South Korea undertook to formally request his extradition.
At United Statesa federal jury indicted him on eight counts, including stock fraud and online fraud.
According to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Do Kwon is accused of “orchestrating a multi-billion dollar cryptoasset fraud.”
The businessman is now due to appear in two cases in. MontenegroThe case of the alleged forgery case and the examination of his possible extradition.
It is believed that Do Kwon fled from South Korea to Singapore prior to the bankruptcy of his company in May 2022.
In September, South Korean prosecutors asked Interpol to issue a red notice in the organization’s 195 member countries and cancelled his passport.
Terraform Labs is the parent company of TerraUSD, a cryptocurrency described as stable (“stablecoin”) which in theory guarantees more security to investors in this volatile sector.
The cryptocurrencies are under increasing scrutiny by the authorities, particularly following the collapse of FTX, a major trading platform.
Many investors lost their life savings when the cryptocurrencies TerraUSD and Moonfounded by Kwon. South Korean authorities opened several criminal investigations (AFP).
We recommend METADATARPP’s technology podcast. News, analysis, reviews, recommendations and everything you need to know about the technological world.
