US DOJ: "Kwon Do-hyung Faces Maximum Sentence of 130 Years... Court Appearance on the 8th"

The key figure in the cryptocurrency 'Terra·Luna' crash incident, Kwon Do-hyung, faces a maximum sentence of up to 130 years if all criminal charges against him are proven guilty. Kwon is charged with nine counts, including securities and commodities fraud.

On the 2nd (local time), the U.S. Department of Justice confirmed Kwon's court appearance and presented the maximum sentence he faces accordingly.

The Department of Justice explained that Kwon was extradited from Montenegro and arrived in the United States on the 31st of last month. The case is assigned to Judge John Cronan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. He is scheduled to appear before Judge Cronan on the 8th. The Department of Justice stated, "If all charges are proven guilty, Kwon could face up to 130 years in prison."

On the same day, Kwon appeared at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan and pleaded not guilty through his attorney Andrew Chesley before Magistrate Judge Robert Leavitt. He also agreed through his lawyer to remain detained without bail.

Bloomberg News noted that Kwon's appearance at the New York federal court marked the end of nearly two years of drama surrounding his custody. In the U.S., criminal trials require the defendant's personal appearance, and no further proceedings had taken place since his indictment in 2022. The South Korean government requested extradition to secure his custody, and Kwon also hoped to go to South Korea, where penalties are lighter than in the U.S., but this ultimately did not happen.

Kwon is accused of deceiving investors regarding the blockchain technology of TerraUSD (UST), a cryptocurrency issued by Terraform Labs, which he founded. Following the Terra·Luna crash in 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York indicted Kwon on eight counts and added money laundering charges in the updated indictment on this day.

Separately from the criminal trial, Kwon has already lost a lawsuit filed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Subsequently, Kwon agreed to pay $4.47 billion (approximately 6.5 trillion KRW) in disgorgement and fines to the SEC. However, his company later filed for bankruptcy.