The court found Do Kwon, the founder of Terraform Labs, guilty of forging documents. A court in Montenegro sentenced him to a four-month jail term, including the time he had already spent in custody. As such, his actual time in prison might be somewhat less than a month.
The court has also given an order to confiscate Kwon and Terra employee Han Chang-Joon’s two Costa Rican passports, two Belgian passports, and two IDs.
Han Chang-joon, who used to be the Chief Financial Officer of Terraform, got the same sentence. Even though Kwon stated Chang-joon was innocent and should be the only one to carry out the sentence.
Kwon and Chang-Joon Sentenced in Podgorica
A Basic Court in the nation’s capital, Podgorica, announced the decision on Monday. If the two former Terraform executives don’t agree with the sentence, they have eight days from when they get a copy of the verdict to file an appeal.
JUST IN:
Terra founder Do Kwon sentenced to 4 months in prison in Montenegro.
— whalechart (@WhaleChart) June 19, 2023
Authorities in the Balkan country arrested both the South Korean man and another Terra executive, Han Chang-Joon. The authorities arrested them in March for possessing fake documents. Even though a local court granted bail to the two for the second time last week, they are still in jail.
Before Kwon was arrested in Montenegro, the former executive said he was “not on the run,” even though South Korean officials were looking for him around the world and even asked Interpol for a red notice. Even though Interpol sent him a Red Notice, he was able to get away for months. Then he was finally caught in a European country.
South Korea and United States Want The Terra Officials
Authorities in both South Korea and the United States have requested his extradition. Specifically, so he can face criminal charges linked to the collapse of the multi-billion dollar crypto business Terra. Terra collapsed in May 2022. Hence, last year after the loud failure of the Terra ecosystem, Kwon went missing. He stayed away from the police for several months, even though he said he was willing to talk about what happened.
Earlier today, a High Court in Podgorica said that Kwon will stay in “extradition custody” for six months while South Korea’s request is being considered.
He said earlier this week that he didn’t know his Costa Rican ID was a fake. But Kwon also had a Belgian passport with a different name and birth date. Even though the Basic Court in Podgorica has given its verdict, it is still unclear whether they will send Kwon to South Korea or the United States to face punishment there.
