Mastermind behind crypto crash requests bail at $440,000
Do Kwon’s lawyers sought his bail in Montenegro for around $440,000 after he pleaded not guilty in court.
Bail was not immediately accepted by the prosecutor, stating the amount offered by the accused is not enough to guarantee he would not escape, according to Montenegrin daily Pobjeda Thursday.
Kwon, 32, the mastermind behind the failed TerraUSD and Luna that wiped out around $40 billion in a crypto crash last May, filed the request for bail with a district court in the Balkan country. He was caught attempting to board a flight to Dubai in possession of forged passports and other falsified documents in March.
Fellow fugitive Han Chang-joon, former Terra CFO, was also charged with possession of a forged passport and applied for bail.
Their lawyers requested bail of 400,000 euros ($437,180) each.
When asked about his assets by the judge, Kwon said he is of medium wealth.
Kwon said he and his wife co-own an apartment in Seoul worth around 3 million euros ($3.2 million). But he refused to disclose the exact value of his assets, saying the value fluctuates. His attorney said that Kwon would reveal the total value of his property without the presence of the media, adding that this information could be used against him.
His total assets are estimated to be more than he stated.
The Korean court froze 233.3 billion won ($175 million) worth of Kwon’s assets including property at Galleria Foret, one of the most luxurious residences in Seoul, ownership of an officetel building under development in Gangnam, and securities and funds deposited at a broker and bank, according to local media reports Wednesday.
“The court hearing is expected to take place several more times, which will give Kwon time to prepare his strategies against the legal charges he faces in the United States,” who is seeking Kwon’s extradition, said Lee Hee-jun, Attorney at Law at Kisung law firm.
Kwon faces eight counts in the United States including securities fraud, wire fraud, commodities fraud and conspiracy.
“The United States is the country he would be most afraid to be extradited to as he may be forced to stay until his death, in the worst-case scenario. So he needs this time to prepare for that,” Lee added.
Bernard Lawrence Madoff, a late American fundraiser and financier who was the mastermind of a Ponzi scheme worth almost $65 billion, was sentenced to 150 years in prison, the maximum sentence allowed. He died in prison at 82 in April 2021.
Korean prosecutors are competing with U.S. prosecutors to extradite Kwon from Montenegro. Interpol issued a Red Notice for Kwon upon the Korean police’s request for assistance in Kwon’s capture.
A Red Notice is a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition or surrender.
Kwon’s next court hearing is set for June 16.
Kwon is believed to have moved to Montenegro after hiding in Serbia from Korean investigators who tracked down his location and asked Serbian authorities to detain him.
Following the crypto crash, the Korean government is pushing to pass a bill designed to protect investors.
New legislation for crypto on Friday passed the National Policy Committee, a key legislative review subcommittee of the National Assembly. There are 19 proposals that include requiring customer deposits to be placed into segregated deposits and or trust accounts, and that customer virtual assets be stored in the same asset and same amount in which they were entrusted.
The earliest the bill could be passed is at the National Assembly plenary session on May 25.
BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]