South Korean Prosecutors Issue Do Kwon Arrest Warrant – Latest

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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June 26, 2023

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South Korean prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant for Do Kwon (real named Kwon Do-hyeong), the co-founder and CEO of Terraform Labs – the firm behind the Terra ecosystem coins LUNA and LUNC. [Updated at UTC 09:03]

Kwon is currently residing in Singapore. According to Digital Today and Chosun Ilbo, South Korean prosecutors may seek aid from Interpol in their efforts to arrest the CEO. They are also reportedly keen to work with their Singaporean counterparts.

Warrants have also been issued for a number of fellow Terraform Labs executives. The media outlets reported that two special investigative teams belonging to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office issued a total of six arrest warrants.

As well as Kwon, prosecutors want to arrest Nicholas Platias, who was described as a “founding executive” of Terraform Labs. Platias was the Head of Research at Terraform until 2020. A Stanford University graduate, he has more recently been involved in a project named Stealth Web3 Startup, per his LinkedIn profile. 

A warrant for another individual, surnamed Han and described as a “Terraform employee,” was also issued. The identity of the other individuals has not yet been revealed.

All six individuals are believed to be residing in Singapore, where Terraform was founded in 2018.

Details remain scant at the time of writing, as the prosecution is yet to release a statement. But officials have confirmed that the individuals are wanted on charges of violating the Capital Market Act.

This would appear to indicate that prosecutors believe they have enough evidence to charge all six individuals with fraud-related offenses.

Chosun reported that the arrest warrants are “valid for one year,” and that the prosecution is reportedly planning to take measures such as asking Interpol to place Kwon on its “red notice” list.

An Interpol red notice, per the law enforcement agency’s own website, is “a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.”

The prosecution is also mulling other measures including invalidating Kwon’s passport.