Montenegro Approves US Extradition Request for Terra (LUNA) Founder Do Kwon

Minister Bojan Bozokiv signed the verdict on December 27, ending the lingering decision. Notably, the US and South Korea keenly contested the extradition of the embattled Terra boss

Breaking: Montenegro Approves US Extradition Request for Terra (LUNA) Founder Do Kwon

Montenegro’s Minister of Justice, Bojan Bozokiv, has signed a verdict approving the United States' request to extradite Do Kwon, the embattled founder of the collapsed Terra (LUNA) ecosystem.

The decision, dated December 27, puts an end to the months-long legal battle over Kwon's extradition, with both the US and South Korea seeking to prosecute him for his alleged involvement in the catastrophic 2022 Terra implosion.

As previously reported, the Terra ecosystem crashed in 2022, wiping out billions of dollars from the cryptocurrency market. Its native token, LUNA, plummeted from over $100 to nearly worthless after the algorithmic stablecoin TerraUSD (UST) lost its peg to the dollar.

Following the over $40 billion crypto market wipeout, Kwon went on the run, escaping to Serbia before eventually entering Montenegro. In March 2023, Montenegrin police arrested him and his partner, Han Cheng Jun, at Podgorica Airport as they attempted to flee the country to Dubai.

Both the United States and South Korea had filed requests to extradite Kwon, with prosecutors from both countries seeking to indict the Terra boss for his role in the 2022 crash.

Bozokiv noted that both countries met the requirements to extradite Kwon from Montenegro, as per an earlier ruling by the country's Supreme Court. However, he ultimately favored the US request based on several criteria, including the gravity of the crime, order of submission, citizenship, and the possibility of further extradition.

The statement did not disclose any further details regarding the extradition, such as the date or method of transfer. Kwon currently remains in a facility for foreigners in Montenegro after being released from prison last year.

nobr>Earlier this year, a federal court ruled that Montenegro would extradite Kwon to South Korea for further trial. South Korean authorities had placed a "red notice" on Kwon and made several attempts to apprehend him, but he managed to evade capture until his arrest in March.

If convicted in his home country, the Terra founder could face up to 40 years in prison. The Terraform Labs crash also impacted major crypto firms like Three Arrows Capital (3AC) and FTX, with the latter filing for bankruptcy earlier this year and paying a hefty $4.47 billion fine to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).