Terraform Labs CEO Faces Extradition to U.S., Potential 100-Year Sentence

Montenegro Court Decides on U.S. Extradition
Facing trial for 8 charges, including securities fraud
The previously indicted FTX founder faces up to 115 years in prison

The U.S. extradition has been decided for Kwon Do Hyung, CEO of Terraform Labs, who is currently detained in Montenegro on charges of cryptocurrency fraud. This comes after the “Terra·Luna crash” incident significantly impacted the virtual asset (cryptocurrency) market. Kwon has three days to appeal, but if the extradition is confirmed, he could face a prison sentence of over 100 years.

According to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), on the 21st (local time), a Montenegrin court ruled that Kwon should stand trial for virtual asset fraud in the U.S. Both Korean and U.S. judicial authorities requested the extradition of the criminal. Still, the final decision of the Montenegrin authorities was the U.S.

Kwon disappeared after TerraUSD and its sister cryptocurrency, Luna, issued by Terraform Labs in the spring of 2022, collapsed one after another in a system breakdown. The global investment damage was estimated to exceed $40 billion (about 53 trillion won). Kwon was later detained in a local prison in Montenegro when it was discovered that he used a forged passport. The New York prosecutor indicted Kwon on eight charges, including securities fraud, commodities fraud, and conspiracy to manipulate prices.

Kwon’s extradition to the U.S. was somewhat predetermined. Last month, Kwon’s defense attorney said in a document submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York that “the extradition procedure in Montenegro is in its final stages” and “the Montenegrin court can order extradition at any time, and accordingly, he could enter the U.S. as early as mid-March.”

The attorney submitted this document to postpone the trial scheduled for January 29 in the U.S. The attorney requested a delay until March 18, as Kwon could now appear in person.

Currently, Kwon’s side is still denying all charges. It is known that they have decided to appeal against the U.S. extradition decision. However, the probability of the Montenegrin court accepting the appeal appears to be low. For Montenegro, the relationship with the U.S. and the trial scheduled for next month could pose a burden. Former Justice Minister Andrej Milovic also emphasized the importance of the partnership with the U.S. when questioned about Kwon’s extradition.

As Kwon’s extradition to the U.S. is imminent, there is growing interest in the sentence he will receive. Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX, who was first prosecuted for embezzling customer funds amounting to billions of dollars, is facing a crisis with all seven charges acknowledged as guilty, potentially leading to a maximum sentence of 115 years.

According to the cryptocurrency-specialized media CryptoRank, “We need to pay attention to the fact that criminal punishment in the U.S. will be much stricter than in Korea,” cryptocurrency expert Colin Wu explained. “Kwon is facing eight serious crimes, and if all punishments are combined, the maximum sentence in the U.S. could be longer.”

He also predicted that “while the maximum sentence in Korea is only about 40 years, in the U.S., a sentence of over 100 years can be handed down.”