South Korean crypto-fugitive Do Kwon has been released from prison in Montenegro while the Supreme Court considers extradition requests from the United States and South Korea.
He was released on Saturday, March 23, according to a Bloomberg report. The Supreme Court halted the extradition of the Terraform Labs co-founder to South Korea, suspending the lower court's ruling.
Kwon is now facing fraud charges in both South Korea and the US , stemming from Terra's collapse, which resulted in a loss of market value of about $60 billion by 2022. Prison director Darko Vukcevic reportedly said by phone:
"We released Do Kwon from prison when his usual punishment for traveling with false documents ended. Since he is a foreigner and his documents were seized, he was taken to the Foreigners Police Department for questioning, which will deal with him further."
According to reports, the decision to release Kwon has been made by the Supreme Court Council, which is expected to consider a decision that could agree or deny extradition to his native South Korea. In South Korea, punishments are relatively lighter than in the U.S., where prosecutors are seeking to charge Kwon in connection with the collapse of the $40 billion TerraUSD algorithmic stablecoin in 2022 .
Kwon's lawyer, Goran Rodic, also confirmed his release. According to state television, Kwon's passport was seized to prevent him from leaving the country. According to state TV, citing Rodic, who said he would appeal to the court for Kwon to remain at large pending the extradition ruling, Kwon was transferred to a shelter for foreigners on Saturday.
The Supreme Court's decision followed a complaint by the Balkan nation's chief prosecutor, who cited procedural errors in rulings favorable to South Korea's request. Extradition to any country is pending further deliberations by the court, and no specific timetable was given after Friday's announcement.
