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

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 precocious determined that each ineligible conditions for Kwon’s extradition had been met. Following this ruling, the Ministry of Justice evaluated the competing requests and concluded that the US petition favored the astir ineligible 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 specified arsenic the severity of the alleged crimes, the determination of their commission, the timing of the requests, and Kwon’s citizenship.

The determination comes aft months of ineligible deliberation and competing extradition requests from some the US and South Korea. Recently, Montenegro’s Constitutional Court unanimously rejected Kwon’s entreaty to debar extradition, alleging ineligible issues.

Kwon’s ineligible squad has raised concerns astir extradition, claiming that the Montenegrian justness strategy violated his cardinal rights by refusing to determine connected their requests, infringing connected their client’s rights to defence and ineligible remedy.

Potentially extremity of a lengthy battle

Kwon faces important ineligible challenges successful the US. In February 2023, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a suit against Kwon and Terraform Labs, alleging they misled investors astir the stableness of TerraUSD and the usage of Terraform’s blockchain exertion successful a fashionable Korean mobile outgo app.

One period later, authorities apprehended Kwon portion attempting to question from Montenegro utilizing a counterfeit passport.

Authorities person charged him with assorted offenses related to the illness of TerraUSD and Luna tokens, which caused astir $40 cardinal successful losses. Additionally, successful June, a US tribunal fined Kwon $4.5 billion aft failing to settle the civilian suit with the SEC.

Meanwhile, South Korea has besides signaled a beardown involvement successful prosecuting Kwon. The Appellate Court antecedently upheld a determination to prioritize South Korea’s extradition petition implicit the US.

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

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