Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon’s extradition to the US was annulled by the Appellate Court docket of Montenegro, in line with a Mar. 5 discover on the Court docket’s web site.
This improvement happens amid bankrupt Terraform Labs’ latest authorized wrangle with the US SEC.
Why was Kwon’s extradition annulled?
Based on the Court docket, the Excessive Court docket of Podgorica’s choice to permit Kwon to be extradited to the US for felony prosecution violated the nation’s felony process provisions.
One other argument central to Kwon’s profitable enchantment was the willpower of extradition precedence. Regardless of Kwon’s choice for South Korea, the Excessive Court docket in Podgorica dominated in favor of an extradition to the US. This choice was based mostly on the priority of the US extradition request, which was obtained a day sooner than South Korea’s request.
Nevertheless, the Appellate Court docket challenged this ruling. It identified that the US momentary detention request arrived on Mar. 27, 2023, after South Korea’s extradition request. South Korea’s request had been communicated through emails on Mar. 24, 2023, and Mar. 26, 2023 — previous the formal request on Mar. 28, 2023.
As such, the appeals court docket decided that the case needs to be returned to the Court docket of first occasion for retrial.
Kwon’s extradition has dragged on for a number of months, with each the US and South Korea searching for trials inside their jurisdiction. Authorities in each international locations need Kwon to reply for his position within the collapse of Terra’s algorithmic UST stablecoin, which wiped over $40 billion from the crypto business.
Terraform Labs slam SEC’s overreach
The SEC just lately opposed Terraform Labs’ $166 million fee to Dentons, contending that the agency shouldn’t interact the regulation agency or cowl authorized bills for workers amidst chapter proceedings.
In a March 4 submitting, Terraform Labs responded to the SEC’s opposition to the $166 million retainer price paid to regulation agency Dentons.
The bankrupt crypto agency criticized the SEC’s objection for instance of presidency overreach. It additionally asserted that the regulator’s transfer aimed to disrupt proceedings earlier than trial.
Based on the agency:
“The SEC’s objection, framed as a creditor concern, is a pretext for its true motive: to drawback and distract an adversary on the eve of trial.”
The agency urged the court docket to dismiss the SEC’s objections, citing them as containing authorized misinterpretations and factual inaccuracies.