The former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Terraform Labs, Han Chang-joon, has been extradited from Montenegro to South Korea on February 5, as stated by the police on a Montenegrin government website. Although identified only as J.C.H. in the statement, his identity was confirmed by an unnamed police spokesman to Reuters.
Han, along with former Terraform CEO Do Kwon, was apprehended at the airport in Podgorica, Montenegro’s capital, on March 23. They were caught attempting to use counterfeit Costa Rican passports to board a private jet bound for Dubai. According to the Montenegrin police statement, Han was transferred to South Korean authorities for prosecution regarding several fraud-related criminal charges.
Interestingly, the police statement mentioned that Han faces a potential life sentence in South Korea, a harsher penalty than what Kwon may face, according to a South Korean newspaper report suggesting Kwon could receive up to 40 years in prison.
Država Crna Gora je danas postupila po zamolnici Južne Koreje, i po odluci Ministarstva pravde predala Haan Chang Joon-a nadležnim organima njegove matične države. pic.twitter.com/OvQ1qNyxr1
— Ministarstvo pravde Crne Gore (@PravdaCG) February 5, 2024
Following their arrest, Han and Kwon spent four months in prison in Montenegro for falsifying their travel documents. While residing in Serbia, where Kwon established a business despite an Interpol “Red Notice” for his arrest in South Korea, they were apprehended.
Kwon faces charges related to the collapse of Terraform Labs’ stablecoin ecosystem in May 2022. Their arrests prompted conflicting requests for Kwon’s extradition, who remains in Montenegro for now. After legal proceedings, a court in Montenegro ruled in December to extradite Kwon to the United States, where he faces multiple charges, including fraud and market manipulation.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has sought to postpone proceedings against Terraform Labs and Kwon until his arrival. The agency’s attempt at a summary judgement in November was unsuccessful. Terraform Labs filed for bankruptcy in the United States on January 21.
In the fraud trial in South Korea, Terraform Labs co-founder Shin Hyun-Seong, also known as Daniel Shin, attributed the collapse of Terraform to “external attacks carried out by Do-hyung Kwon [Do Kwon].”