Do Kwon to challenge extradition to US on fraud charges, his lawyer says

Do Kwon’s lawyer told DL News they plan to appeal his extradition to the US, which was ordered by the High Court in Podgorica, Montenegro, earlier this week.

Goran Rodic, Kwon’s attorney, said he plans to argue that Montenegro’s Ministry of Justice violated procedural rules in the extradition process.

“The decision is illegal,” Rodic said in an interview.

“We are not aware of anywhere in the world where the Minister of Justice can tell the court how to apply the law and what decision it should make, as was the case here in Montenegro.”

Eight counts of fraud

The US Department of Justice has charged Kwon with eight counts of fraud in connection with the $60 billion collapse of the Terra blockchain network in May 2022.

Kwon has denied the allegations.

Montenegro’s court ruled on Wednesday that Kwon should be extradited to the US and rejected a similar request from his native South Korea. The rulings were first reported by local media in the Balkan nation.

Kwon has been jailed in Montenegro for almost a year after being arrested at Podgorica Airport in March while trying to escape to Dubai with a false Costa Rican passport.

Kwon and his business associate, Han Chang-joon, had been on the run from Interpol and South Korean authorities for months.

Earlier this month, Chang-joon was extradited to South Korea on charges related to the fall of Terra.

The decision against South Korea’s request is final, Marija Rakovic, spokeswoman for the High Court, told DL News.

‘False information’

The Ministry of Justice has not responded to DL News’ request for comment.

Rodic claimed that “when making its decision, the court did not check the accuracy of the facts submitted to it by the Minister of Justice, even though there is evidence in the case file that the information was false.”

He said this would be explained in detail during the appeal against Kwon’s extradition.

Ana Ćurić is DL News’ data journalist. Contact her at ana@dlnews.com.