Ramazan Eles 
Do Kwon, the founder of Terraform Labs, has won an extradition appeal in Montenegro, potentially averting extradition to the U.S. where he faces fraud charges related to the collapse of Terra’s ecosystem.
The Appellate Court of Montenegro overturned a previous ruling by a court in Podgorica, sending the case back for retrial and decision-making, as per a statement on the court’s website.
Kwon, who had appealed against the extradition request to the U.S., fled to Montenegro after Terra’s collapse in mid-2022, resulting in significant losses for investors. He was arrested on charges of possessing falsified official documents and is currently serving a four-month prison sentence while awaiting extradition approval.
Both the U.S. and South Korean governments have sought Kwon’s extradition for his involvement in Terra’s collapse.
The retrial is set because “there are no clear and valid reasons for decisive facts regarding the order of arrival of requests” for extradition from the U.S. and South Korea, according to the announcement.
Kwon’s lawyer, Goran Rodic, previously stated that local courts faced political pressure to expedite the extradition process.
While this legal victory delays or potentially cancels Kwon’s extradition, it doesn’t entirely preclude the possibility. The case will be reheard by the original court, indicating that extradition is currently postponed.
In February, Han Chang-Joon, Kwon’s former CFO at Terraform, was extradited to South Korea by Montenegrin authorities.