Montenegro Court of Appeal Decides to Extradite Kwon Do-hyung to Korea

Tug of War Between South Korea and the US Over Kwon Do-hyung's Extradition
Situation Reverses After US Attorney General Advocating Extradition Is Replaced
South Korea's Punishment Likely to Be Less Severe Than the US's If Extradited

Kwon Do-hyung, who caused significant damage to the cryptocurrency market with the Terra and Luna crash, is highly likely to be extradited to South Korea.

On the 1st (local time), the Montenegro Court of Appeal announced that it had confirmed the Podgorica High Court's ruling to extradite Kwon to South Korea.

In its ruling, the Court of Appeal stated, "The Podgorica High Court allowed the simplified extradition of Kwon Do-hyung to South Korea, while rejecting the United States' request for criminal extradition. Since neither the prosecution nor the defense appealed this decision, the ruling of the Podgorica High Court is legally binding."

Accordingly, Kwon is expected to undergo the extradition process to South Korea soon.

Kwon caused losses exceeding 50 trillion won to investors worldwide and fled South Korea in April 2022. He was arrested and detained in Montenegro last March on charges of possessing a forged passport. Both the South Korean and U.S. prosecutors, who have been investigating Kwon, requested his extradition from the Montenegro Court of Appeal, which currently holds his custody. Subsequently, disputes arose over whether the authority to decide on his extradition lies with the court or the Minister of Justice, causing the extradition decision to fluctuate for over a year.

Earlier, the Court of Appeal decided to extradite Kwon to South Korea in March, but Andrija Milovi?, the Minister of Justice, who was mindful of relations with the U.S., put a halt to the process. Following an objection from the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, the Supreme Court invalidated the extradition to South Korea, returning the case to square one. However, the situation reversed recently with the replacement of Minister Milovi?. There remains a possibility that the new Minister of Justice may intervene to enforce Kwon's extradition to the U.S.

Meanwhile, Kwon himself has strongly wished to be extradited to South Korea. Analysts suggest this is because harsher punishment is expected if he is sent to the U.S. South Korea's maximum sentence for economic crimes is about 40 years. In contrast, the U.S. applies a consecutive sentencing system, adding sentences for each individual crime, so if Kwon is extradited to the U.S., he could face imprisonment exceeding 100 years.