Montenegro to extradite 'crypto king' to South Korea, not the US

(Patria) - The High Court of Montenegro has decided that the arrested "crypto king" Hyeong Do Kwon will be extradited to his home country of South Korea.

On February 21, the same court decided that Hyeong Do Kwon would be extradited to the United States, but that decision was overturned by the Appellate Court of Montenegro on March 5.

The latest decision will be final and legally binding if the lawyers of the South Korean "crypto king" do not appeal. They advocated during the process for Do Kwon to be extradited to South Korea.

Montenegrin courts have so far made decisions several times regarding the requests of South Korea and the USA to extradite Do Kwon, whom both countries accuse of financial fraud in the cryptocurrency business.

Montenegrin legislation gives priority to the country that first submits an extradition request.

On March 27, 2023, the US Embassy submitted a note to the Montenegrin Ministry of Justice requesting temporary detention for the extradition of Do Kwon, and South Korea submitted an extradition request the following day.

While in the first decision the High Court treated the US Embassy's note as a request and decided to extradite him to the US, the Appellate Court problematized this and overturned that decision.

In the new decision, the High Court decided that South Korea has priority for the extradition of Do Kwon.

Do Kwon and his business partner Chang Joon were arrested at the end of March last year at the Podgorica airport when they attempted to travel to Dubai on a private plane with fake passports.

Chang Joon was extradited to South Korea on February 5 this year.