"Kwon Do-hyung Punished by Korean Court"… Government Launches International Public Opinion Campaign

Our government has launched an 'international public opinion campaign' to bring back Kwon Do-hyung, the 32-year-old CEO of Terraform Labs, who was arrested in Montenegro. The situation has turned into a competition with the United States, which also seeks to prosecute Kwon, who caused over 50 trillion won in damages to global investors due to the cryptocurrency Terra and Luna fiasco, in their respective courts first.

Kwon Do-hyung, CEO of Terraform Labs
Photo by Yonhap News

According to the legal community on the 31st, both South Korea and the United States have requested Kwon's extradition from the Montenegrin judicial authorities. However, Kwon is expected to face trial first in Montenegro for using a forged Costa Rican passport locally. Marko Kova?i?, Montenegro’s Minister of Justice, explained, "If a foreigner receives a prison sentence in a Montenegrin court, they serve the sentence here first and then the criminal is extradited to the requesting country."

Following Minister Kova?i?’s remarks, Han Dong-hoon, South Korea’s Minister of Justice, publicly stated to reporters at the National Assembly on the 30th, "Naturally, domestic repatriation takes priority." He also emphasized, "Last year, the Southern District Prosecutors’ Office’s Serious Crime Joint Investigation Unit was reinstated to focus on this case, and sufficient evidence has been secured."

On the 29th, a day earlier, Lee Bok-hyun, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service, firmly stated in an interview with Bloomberg News, "Kwon should be prosecuted in South Korea." He highlighted the cooperation between the Financial Supervisory Service and the prosecution in investigating Kwon’s case and added, "This will be a strong case for both the market and the legal community."

The domestic and international interviews by Minister Han and Governor Lee serve as a 'show of determination' sent to Montenegro, urging them to "trust the South Korean judicial authorities," given that there are no other means besides waiting for Montenegro’s decision.

Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon Photo by Yonhap News

Lee Bok-hyun, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service [Image source=Yonhap News]

When Montenegrin media reported that "the United States filed the extradition request faster than South Korea," the Ministry of Justice immediately refuted this. On the 30th, the Ministry stated, "We filed the extradition request for Kwon Do-hyung on the 24th, a day earlier than the United States." The timing of the extradition request is a sensitive issue, as Montenegrin authorities have said, "In deciding which country to send Kwon Do-hyung to, we will consider the severity of the crime, the location of the offense, the nationality of the criminal, as well as the timing of the requests."

The legal community expects the government to continue sending strong messages without letting the competition with the United States become excessively heated. However, it remains uncertain whether these efforts will be effective. It is anticipated that a considerable amount of time will pass before the Montenegrin court, which is handling Kwon’s local forged passport case, issues a final ruling and decides on his extradition abroad.

Kwon’s local attorney has also expressed the intention to "take the forged passport case all the way to the Supreme Court." If domestic repatriation becomes concrete, Kwon’s side may file lawsuits to oppose it. Conversely, there is also a possibility that Kwon might change his mind and voluntarily return. He could finish the first trial of the local lawsuit and express his wish to be repatriated to South Korea. Most Korean criminals who fled abroad choose to serve their sentences domestically rather than in foreign prisons, and Kwon might make the same choice. Recently, former Chairman Kim Sung-tae and executives of Ssangbangwool Group, who fled overseas to avoid investigation in the 'North Korea remittance' case, voluntarily returned to Korea.

Meanwhile, Shin Hyun-sung, former CEO of Chai Corporation and identified as a key figure in the Terra and Luna crash, avoided detention on the same day. The Seoul Southern District Court dismissed the arrest warrant request filed against Shin on charges of fraud and violation of the Capital Markets Act. Presiding Judge Yoo Hwan-woo stated, "There is little concern about evidence tampering."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.