Ex-CFO of Terraform Labs Extradited to South Korea

The former chief financial officer of Terraform Labs, Han Chang-joon, has been extradited from Montenegro to South Korea, according to a statement by the police on the Montenegrin government website. Han, who was identified as J.C.H. in the statement, was arrested alongside former Terraform CEO Do Kwon at the airport in Podgorica on March 23. They were found using fake Costa Rican passports in an attempt to board a private jet heading to Dubai. Han has now been handed over to South Korean authorities for criminal proceedings related to several offenses of fraud.

Interestingly, the police statement revealed that Han is facing a life sentence in South Korea, which is a more severe punishment compared to the potential 40-year sentence Kwon may receive, according to a South Korean newspaper. Han and Kwon had already spent four months in prison in Montenegro for forging their travel documents. Despite an Interpol “Red Notice” for Kwon’s arrest issued in South Korea, they had been living in Serbia, where Kwon had established a business.

Kwon’s arrest was in connection with the collapse of Terraform Labs’ stablecoin ecosystem in May 2022. The arrests sparked calls for Kwon’s extradition, but he remains in Montenegro for now. Eventually, a court in Montenegro ruled in December to extradite Kwon to the United States, where he faces eight charges, including commodities fraud, securities fraud, wire fraud, and conspiracy to defraud and manipulate the market. The US Securities and Exchange Commission has also supported the delay of proceedings in its complaint against Terraform Labs and Kwon until his arrival. In November, the agency had unsuccessfully requested a summary judgment in the case.

On January 21, Terraform Labs filed for bankruptcy in the United States. During his fraud trial in South Korea, the co-founder of Terraform Labs, Shin Hyun-Seong, or Daniel Shin, placed blame on the collapse of the platform on “external attacks carried out by Do-hyung Kwon [Do Kwon].”