The Montenegrin Basic Court re-approves Do Kwon's request for $430,000 bail

The Montenegrin Basic Court re-approves Do Kwon's request for $430,000 bail

A request by Do Kwon, the co-founder of Terraforms Labs and the collapsed Terra Luna ecosystem, to be released on $430,000 bail has been re-approved by the Podgorica Basic Court.

The new development comes less than two weeks after a high court in Podgorica upheld prosecutors' appeal against the lower court's decision to release Kwon, as legal proceedings over his forgery allegations remain ongoing.

Kwon's bail application reapproved

According to an official statement from the Podgorica Basic Court, the new decision took into account all the reasons for overturning the original verdict. Kwon and Han Chong-Joon, his associate, are released on $430,000 bail each and are being held in an apartment where they will be monitored by police.

The basic court issued the first ruling in mid-May after Kwon's defense attorneys offered to release the co-founder and his associate from custody and hold them at a specified address to attend court regularly during trials.

Prosecutors rejected the proposal because Kwon and Joon had no concrete reason to remain in Montenegro until the next hearing date, scheduled for June 16. They eventually appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, where it was overturned. Kwon and Joon should remain in prison until the trial is completed.

"In making this decision, the court took into account the evidence presented by their defense lawyers about the financial situation of the defendants, the seriousness of the crime of which the defendants are reasonably suspected, their personal and family circumstances, as well as the..." "The financial situation of the persons making the bail and the opinion of the representative of the public prosecutor's office," the basic court said.

Kwon is awaiting extradition

While Kwon and his associate are under house arrest, the court intends to verify the authenticity of the travel documents and identity cards found in their possession when they were arrested at Podgorica Airport.

Kwon pleaded not guilty to allegations that the documents were forged. The international fugitive was on the run for months before his arrest and was caught trying to flee to Dubai on a private jet. If found guilty, he and Joon face a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

Montenegrin authorities have said that Kwon must complete criminal proceedings in the country before being extradited to either the US or South Korea to face trial over the collapse of the Terra ecosystem.

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