Terraform Labs Co-Founder Do Kwon Could Miss Initial SEC Trial Due to Extradition Challenges
The trial of Do-Kwon, co-founder of Terraform Labs, before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) may face a delay due to extradition issues, according to a report by Reuters.
Kwon’s defense attorney has indicated that his extradition challenges might prevent him from appearing at the trial scheduled to begin on March 25.
In a letter to a New York federal court, Kwon’s lawyer, David Patton, clarified that Kwon does not intend to request a postponement of the trial date. Despite expressing his desire to attend the proceedings in person, Kwon has faced hurdles leading up to the trial, which was initially set for January before being rescheduled for March.
Goran Rodic, another attorney representing Kwon in Montenegro, explained in a declaration attached to Patton’s letter that unforeseen errors from the local lower court have resulted in delays in the legal process within Montenegro.
Last week, the Montenegrin high court ruled in favor of Kwon’s extradition to the United States, disregarding his preference to be extradited to his native South Korea. Rodic confirmed that Kwon plans to appeal the decision, alleging that misinformation led to the court’s ruling, erroneously prioritizing the U.S. extradition request over that of South Korea.
Kwon’s legal troubles began in March last year when he was apprehended at a Montenegrin airport for attempting to travel using forged documents.
The charges leveled against Kwon and Terraform Labs by the SEC involve allegations of fraud, with accusations of raising substantial sums from investors through the sale of interconnected crypto asset securities, many of which were allegedly unregistered transactions. Kwon has continuously denied these accusations.
It is worth noting that the downfall of Kwon and Terraform Labs’ flagship project, the Terra-Luna crypto initiative, sent shockwaves through the market in May 2022, resulting in the loss of approximately $40 billion in investor wealth within a matter of days.
