Kwon Do-hyung, responsible for Terra crash, arrives in Korea this weekend

Terraform Labs CEO Kwon Do-hyung, the main culprit behind the Terra-Luna crash, was decided to be repatriated to South Korea. He is expected to board a plane no earlier than this weekend.

The Montenegro Court of Appeals confirmed the judgment of the Podgorica High Court that Kwon shall be sent back to his home country, citing that the South Korean government’s request for criminal extradition came before that of the U.S. government, according to its website on Wednesday (local time). The appellate court explained that the expatriation of Kwon to South Korea was confirmed as per relevant laws, including Article 26 regarding transfer under the Act on International Judicial Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters.

Necessary procedures to return him to South Korea will be taken as early as this weekend given that his four months’ imprisonment for forfeiting a passport will be finished this Saturday, said The Bloomberg. There is also a possibility that he will come to trial in the United States first based on negotiations between Washington and Seoul. According to Bloomberg, the U.S. government claims that it has strong authority over seizing Kwon’s assets in many other countries, thus possibly reaching an agreement with its South Korean counterpart to share this authority. The South Korean Ministry of Justice is reportedly scheduled to dispatch its personnel to bring him back to the country accompanied by investigators of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor's Office.

Amid concerns that Kwon will be sentenced to less severe punishment if he is brought to his home country, Goran Rodic, Kwon's local attorney, told The Associated Press that he welcomed the appellate court’s decision. Bloomberg also commented that it could be seen as the victory of Kwon and his lawyers, who preferred his repatriation to South Korea, where white-collar crime is handled less severely in the court than in the United States.

In April 2022, right before the Terra Luna Crash broke out, Kwon left for Singapore and vanished into thin air. On March 2, he was caught trying to board a private jet flying to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, with a fake passport at a local airport in Montenegro.


서지원 기자 wish@donga.com