Montenegro’s Supreme Court has nullified the extradition order for Do Kwon, redirecting the case back to the High Court for a fresh decision.
Previously, Montenegro’s Appellate Court had ruled on March 20 in favor of extraditing Do Kwon to South Korea. However, the Supreme Court intervened on March 22, halting the process to allow further examination of the case’s legal intricacies.
In its recent ruling, the Supreme Court determined that the lower courts had exceeded their authority. According to a translated press statement, the Supreme Court emphasized that the initial court lacked the jurisdiction to decide on extradition matters. Instead, it highlighted that extradition decisions fall under the purview of the Minister of Justice, not the courts.
The Supreme Court clarified that the primary responsibility of the lower court should be to assess whether the legal prerequisites for extradition to each requesting country have been met. Only after this assessment can the competent minister, rather than the court, make the final determination regarding extradition.
The Supreme Court ruled against the lower courts in the case of Do won
Friday, 05. April 2024.
Supreme Court of Montenegro in the chamber composed of judges Milenka Seka Žižić, as president of the chamber, Ana Vuković, Zoran Šćepanović, Dr Vesna
Vučković and Seke Piletić, as members of the chamber in the case of extradition of Kwon Do Hyeong, deciding on the request for protection of the legality of the Supreme Court
state prosecutor's Office of Montenegro Ktz. no. 15/24 dated 21.03.2024.filed against the final decision of the higher court in Podgorica Kv.No. 265/24
as of 06.03.2024.year and decisions of the Appellate Court of Montenegro Kvž.no.179/24 dated 20.03.2024.years after the meeting of the council
22.03.2024.after a secret hearing and voting on 03.04.2024.years ago, he made a plea for the protection of
Supreme state prosecutor's Office of Montenegro, abolishes the decisions of the High Court in Podgorica and the Appellate Court of Montenegro and returns the case to the higher court in
To the court of First Instance, for a re-ruling.
In order to objectively inform the public, we cite the position of the Supreme Court of Montenegro, which is stated in the explanation of the verdict:
In a situation where there is a competition between two states for the extradition of the same person, rather than a conflict between the extradition requests of the same person, how
according to the lower courts, it is the duty of the court to determine, in accordance with its powers, whether the legal conditions for extradition have been met
the accused in relation to each request per person, after which the competent minister, and not the court, decides on the permission and order of priority of extradition."
In the present case, the court of first instance could not issue a decision in summary procedure, and in particular could not issue a decision on
which he allows, i.e. refuses to extradite, pursuant to the provisions of art.22 Law on international legal aid in criminal cases
matters shall be decided by the minister of justice, as established by the request for protection of legality."
The same position was held by the Appellate Court of Montenegro, which expressed in its decisions: Kvž.no.484/2015 of 14.12.2015.year; Kvž. no. 521/16 of
10.11.2016.year and Kvž. no. 563/2020 dated 07.12.2020.year."
Consequently, the extradition case of Do Kwon has been remanded to the High Court in Podgorica for reconsideration, marking another chapter in the ongoing legal battle surrounding the controversial crypto figure.
A jury found Terraform Labs and co-founder Do Kwon liable for defrauding investors in its civil case with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
In an April 5 announcement, SEC Enforcement Director Gurbir Grewal said jurors in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York found Kwon and Terraform liable in the civil enforcement case after a short deliberation. The SEC trial started on March 25 without the attendance of Kwon, who remains in Montenegro as courts determine whether to grant an extradition request from the U.S. or South Korea.