Terraform Labs' Do Kwon to miss start of SEC trial on fraud charges: Reuters
Quick Take
- Do Kwon seeks to appeal Montenegro’s decision to extradite the Terra co-founder to the U.S.
Terraform Labs co-founder Kwon Do-hyeong will likely miss the start of the March 25 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission trial on fraud charges amidst the delay in his extradition, Reuters reported citing Kwon’s defense attorney.
Kwon’s lawyer David Patton said Monday in a letter filed to a New York federal court that the former Terra leader does not seek to postpone the trial date, Reuters reported. Kwon previously expressed desire to attend the trial in person, pushing back the trial originally set in January to March.
Goran Rodic, Kwon’s lawyer in Montenegro, reportedly said in a declaration attached to Patton’s letter that “numerous unanticipated mistakes” from the local lower court have caused delays in Montenegrin legal proceedings.
Last week, the Montenegrin high court made the decision to extradite Kwon to the U.S., against his wishes to be extradited to his native South Korea. Rodic said Kwon would appeal the ruling, claiming that the court decision was based on misinformation that the U.S. requested extradition ahead of South Korea. Kwon was arrested at a Montenegrin airport in March last year for attempting to travel with forged documents.
The U.S. SEC accused Kwon and Terraform Labs of fraud charges, raising billions from investors by “offering and selling an inter-connected suite of crypto asset securities, many in unregistered transactions.” Kwon has denied the SEC’s allegations.
Kwon and Terraform Labs’ Terra-Luna crypto project crashed in May 2022, wiping out around $40 billion of investor wealth in a matter of days.
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