Montenegro, caught within the crossfire of extradition battles between the US and South Korea, has lately witnessed a big flip of occasions within the case of disgraced crypto mogul Do Kwon.
After a Montenegrin attraction courtroom rejected his extradition to the US, Montenegro’s Supreme Court docket overturned earlier selections to extradite Kwon to South Korea, Bloomberg lately reported.
This improvement has bolstered US efforts to prosecute the previous crypto mogul for fraud associated to the collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin in 2022. Nonetheless, Do Kwon’s final destiny hangs within the stability as each the US and South Korea search his extradition.
Do Kwon’s Extradition Battle Takes A New Flip
In mid-March, Bitcoinist reported {that a} Montenegrin appeals courtroom had rejected Kwon’s extradition to the US however confirmed that South Korea’s extradition request took priority over the US request. Nonetheless, Montenegro’s Supreme Court docket overturned these earlier selections, reviving US efforts to strive Kwon on fraud costs.
Notably, the Supreme Court docket has acknowledged that the nation’s justice minister will ultimately decide the place Kwon can be handed over, pending an intensive examination of the extradition circumstances.
Latest developments in the US have additional difficult Do Kwon’s state of affairs. A federal jury in New York has discovered Kwon and his firm, Terraform Labs, liable for defrauding traders who collectively invested billions of {dollars} into crypto belongings that later plummeted in worth.
The civil criticism, filed by the Securities and Trade Fee (SEC) in February 2023, alleged that Kwon and Terraform Labs engaged in a fraudulent scheme that resulted in a $40 billion lack of market worth.
Terraform Labs Challenges Verdict
In response to the unfavorable verdict, Terraform Labs expressed disappointment and maintained that the proof didn’t assist the jury’s resolution.
The corporate will consider its authorized choices and subsequent steps, together with a possible attraction. Terraform had beforehand signaled its intention to problem the SEC’s classification of its tokens as “securities.”
Kwon’s absence from the courtroom, which restricted his capability to take part within the proceedings totally, might assist the attraction. a Terraform spokesperson mentioned in an announcement:
We’re very dissatisfied with the decision, which we don’t consider is supported by the proof. We proceed to take care of that the SEC doesn’t have the authorized authority to carry this case in any respect, and we’re rigorously weighing our choices and subsequent steps.
In the end, this resolution aligns with US efforts to prosecute Do Kwon for fraud costs associated to the collapse of TerraUSD stablecoin. Nonetheless, the end result stays unsure as Montenegro’s justice minister will resolve the place Do Kwon can be handed over, pending fulfilling the circumstances for extradition.
Terraform Labs’ Luna token, renamed to Luna Basic (LUNC) after the collapse that triggered authorized motion towards the corporate and its co-founder, is at the moment buying and selling at $0.0001378. It has skilled a marginal 1% improve prior to now 24 hours. Nonetheless, over longer intervals, the token has suffered losses of as much as 28% prior to now 30 days.
Featured picture from CNN, chart from TradingView.com