• South Korean Crypto criminal Do Kwon has been released from prison in Montenegro on March 23, according to Bloomberg. Because the Supreme Court deliberates on extradition requests from the US and South Korea.
  • Kwon was arrested in Montenegro in March 2023 for using falsified travel documents with his colleague, Terraform Labs’ former chief financial officer Han Chang-joon. If extradited to the United States, the Terraform Labs co-founder would likely face eight felony charges filed by prosecutors in March 2023. 

South Korean Crypto fugitive Do Kwon has been released from prison in Montenegro on Saturday. The decision to release Kwon reportedly came from the Council of the Supreme Court, which is set to review a decision that could grant or deny extradition to his native South Korea.

Terra has been released as his regular prison term ended

South Korean Crypto fugitive Do Kwon has been released from prison in Montenegro on Saturday, March 23, according to a Bloomberg report, as the Supreme Court deliberates on extradition requests from the United States and South Korea. The Supreme Court upheld the request to extradite the Terraform Labs co-founder to South Korea, suspending the lower court’s ruling.

Terra founder Kwon is now facing fraud charges in both South Korea and the U.S. stemming from the collapse of Terra Luna, which lost about $60 billion in market value in 2022.

The prison director Darko Vukcevic reportedly said by phone: “We released Do Kwon from prison as his regular prison term for traveling with fake papers ended. Since he is a foreign citizen and his documents were withheld, he was taken for an interview to the police directorate for foreigners, and they will deal with him further.”

Also read: Bitsonic CEO faces 7-year prison term for $7.5M fraud

Final judgement not yet clear

Kwon was arrested in Montenegro in March 2023 for using falsified travel documents with his colleague, Terraform Labs’ former chief financial officer Han Chang-joon. Recently, Kwon’s lawyer Goran Rodic also confirmed his release. His passport has been held back to prevent him from leaving the country. Later on Saturday, Kwon was relocated to a shelter for foreigners, as reported by state TV, citing Rodic, who indicated plans to appeal to a court for Kwon to remain free until an extradition ruling.

The Supreme Court’s action followed a challenge by the chief prosecutor in the Balkan nation, who cited procedural errors in the rulings favoring South Korea’s request. Extradition to either country awaits further court deliberations, with no specified timeline provided after the announcement on Friday. Authorities in the United States and South Korea have filed competing extradition requests for Kwon to face fraud charges in their respective countries, but no final decisions have been made.