Do Kwon Arrested in Montenegro, Faces US Criminal Fraud Charges

LUNA founder Do Kwon has been arrested in Montenegro as US prosecutors file criminal fraud charges against him.

Montenegro interior minister Filip Adzic announced the news Do Kwon's arrest on Twitter, stating that "one of the world's most wanted fugitives" had been detained at the capital's Podgorica airport.

Do Kwon had allegedly been travelling under a false name with fake documents. On Friday, South Korea police confirmed Do Kwon's identity after matching his fingerprints with official records.

Officials are working on extraditing Do Kwon to South Korea. His location had previously been uncertain, but South Korean officials had believed he was in Serbia.

On Thursday, prosecutors at the US District Court in Manhattan said Do Kwon now faces charges of securities fraud, wire fraud, commodities fraud and conspiracy.

He had previously faced civil charges and was charged with fraud by the SEC. The US Department of Justice also launched a probe into the collapse of LUNA.

US financial regulators alleged that Mr Kwon and Singapore-based Terraform Labs "failed to provide the public with full, fair, and truthful disclosure as required for a host of crypto asset securities, most notably for Luna and TerraUSD."

SEC investigators are looking into the relationship between the Terra blockchain and South Korean based payment platform Chai. It is alleged that Do Kwon misled investors into believing Chai transactions were processed on Terra's blockchain, instead of the traditional technology it was actually using.

Singapore investigation

Just last week, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) began an investigation into Terraform Labs and Do Kwon, who is no longer in the country.

In a statement, the SPF said, “Investigations have commenced in relation to Terraform Labs” with "ongoing" inquiries, adding that Do Kwon is not currently in Singapore. He had previously been operating from the city-state.