Terraform Labs co-founder to Kwon He appeared in a US court on January 2 and pleaded not guilty to fraud charges related to the $40 billion TerraUSD blowout.UST) Stablecoin, Bloomberg News It has been reported.
Cowen appeared before U.S. District Judge Robert Lehrberger in Manhattan and agreed to be held without bail. he He faces nine charges, including wire, securities and commodity fraud, stemming from his alleged role in the collapse of Terraform Labs after the price of its tokens. Luna And UST, fell.
After being arrested in Montenegro in March 2023 while trying to travel on a fake passport, Kwon remained in the country during a standoff between U.S. and South Korean authorities over the location of his charges. Both countries had accused Kwon of fraud, and South Korea sought to extradite him because of his citizenship.
Kwon, meanwhile, applied to avoid extradition to the United States because the penalties for financial crimes in South Korea are generally less severe.
Constitutional Court of Montenegro Rejected the appeal On December 26 and subsequently the country's Minister of Justice He signed an order To extradite one of the founders of Terraform Labs a few days later.
On December 31, the Montenegrin police Kwon transferred to US authorities at Podgorica International Airport.
Awaiting trial
New York prosecutors allege that Kwon misled investors about Terra's blockchain capabilities and adoption rate, alleging that his actions directly contributed to the platform's catastrophic collapse.
The Manhattan United States Attorney's Office, which successfully prosecuted the case FTX co-founder Sam Benkman-Fried Last year, lead the case against Kwon.
Additionally, Kwon is currently facing legal repercussions. A US jury found him and Terraform Laboratories liable in a civil fraud case brought by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). with a $4.47 billion settlement. Terraform subsequently filed for bankruptcy.
Cowen's attorney declined to comment after the hearing. A further court conference is scheduled for January 8, which sets the stage for the cryptocurrency trial in the Southern District of New York.
