Montenegrin court delays Do Kwon’s extradition to South Korea

Montenegro’s Supreme Court has reportedly postponed Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon’s extradition after upholding a ruling suggesting he would be removed to South Korea.

According to an Aug. 8 report from Montenegrin news outlet Vijesti, the country’s Supreme Court granted prosecutors’ request to delay Kwon’s extradition to South Korea until the court could rule on a matter concerning the protection of legality. Prosecutors filed the motion on Aug. 2 after an appellate court upheld a previous ruling allowing the Terraform co-founder’s extradition.

From Korea to Montenegro

After Terraform collapsed in 2022, Kwon’s whereabouts were largely unknown, though he remained active on social media. Montenegrin authorities arrested him in March 2023 for using falsified travel documents while attempting to leave the country.

Kwon served four months in a Montenegrin prison, after which time his lawyers and prosecutors began addressing his extradition to the US or South Korea. He would likely face criminal charges and civil lawsuits related to fraud at Terraform in both countries.

Montenegro’s Prime Minister Milojko Spajić was reportedly an early investor in Terraform, sinking $75,000 into the company in 2018.

Since his release from prison, the Terraform co-founder has been mired in legal proceedings. Montenegro’s courts have repeatedly pushed decisions on Kwon’s extradition, with no clear indication at the time of publication of whether he will remain in the country or be sent to either the US or South Korea.

In February, Montenegrin authorities extradited Han Chang-joon, Terraform’s former chief financial officer who was arrested with Kwon, to South Korea. In April, a US court found Terraform and Kwon liable for fraud in a civil case filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission.