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| ▲ This photo taken June 16, 2023, and provided by the Montenegro-based daily newspaper Vijesti shows South Korean crypto fugitive Do Kwon heading to the district court in Podgorica, the capital city of Montenegro, to attend the trial of his charges of using a fake passport. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
crypto fugitive-sentence
Crypto fugitive Do Kwon sentenced to 4 months in prison in Montenegro for passport forgery
ROME, June 19 (Yonhap) -- A Montenegro court on Monday sentenced Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, and one of his aides to four months in prison on charges of using fake passports.
Kwon, 32, who was behind cryptocurrencies that suffered a multibillion-dollar crash last year, and his chief financial officer, identified only by his surname Han, were arrested at Podgorica Airport on March 23 after attempting to travel to Dubai with forged passports.
The Basic Court in Podgorica announced on its website it handed four-month prison terms to both. They denied the charges during previous hearings.
Earlier this month, the court granted bail to both on the condition that they each pay 400,000 euros (US$428,241) in bail money and are placed in confinement under police surveillance.
South Korea and the United States are seeking his extradition.
The duo had been on the run after fleeing South Korea while under a probe in connection to the crash of Terraform Labs' TerraUSD and Luna coins in May last year, which wiped out nearly 50 trillion won ($38 billion) in market value.
South Korean prosecutors have since sought an arrest warrant for Kwon on allegations that included providing false information to investors and the violation of the capital market law.
Interpol also issued a red notice, used for the highest level of wanted suspects and criminals. His passport has since been invalidated.
Kwon is also wanted by the U.S., where he was charged with fraud by federal prosecutors in New York.
It is unclear whether Kwon would be sent to South Korea, as the country requested his extradition first.
In March, the Montenegrin justice minister said which country Kwon will be extradited to will be determined on the basis of the location and the time of his criminal offense and other factors.
TerraUSD was designed as a stablecoin, which was pegged to stable assets, like the U.S. dollar. But holders of TerraUSD and Luna lost more than an estimated $40 billion in market value after the stablecoin plunged far below its $1 peg last May.
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