Do Kwon’s extradition mired in controversy after Montenegro’s ex-Justice Minister alleges corruption

Montenegro’s former Justice Minister Andrej Milović has raised serious concerns about the potential link between the extradition of Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon and Montenegro’s airport concession deal with South Korea, local news outlet Vijesti reported on Sept. 24.

Milović alleged that Prime Minister Milojko Spajić shifted his stance on a 30-year concession for Montenegro’s airports, using Kwon’s extradition as leverage to secure the agreement with South Korea.

Do Kwon, arrested in Montenegro in March 2023 while attempting to travel with falsified documents, is wanted for his role in the collapse of TerraLuna, which caused global financial losses of roughly $40 billion. Both South Korea and the US have requested his extradition.

Political connections

Milović, who is also a candidate in the upcoming local elections in Podgorica to become the city’s mayor, voiced his concerns in a recent media statement.

He claimed that Spajić initially favored granting the concession to France but changed his position after the Court of Appeals ruled that Kwon should be extradited to South Korea.

Milović said:

“Spajić was notably pleased when the court ruled in favor of Kwon’s extradition. Shortly after, he began speaking positively about the South Korean offer for the Airports of Montenegro, despite previously favoring the French bid.”

He further alleged that Spajić has personal ties to the case, referencing reports that Spajić invested $75,000 in Terra/Luna tokens, directly linking him to Kwon’s collapsed crypto project.

Montenegro’s President Jakov Milatović and former Prime Minister Dritan Abazović have also accused Spajić of hiding his connections to Kwon despite multiple documented meetings between the two.

Milović warned that extraditing Kwon to South Korea would prevent a full investigation into the matter and called for the US to pressure Spajić into cooperating with broader inquiries. He added:

“By extraditing Kwon to South Korea, we risk losing crucial information about the case and the involvement of key Montenegrin leaders.”

Kwon’s legal saga

Kwon’s extradition has sparked a geopolitical debate, with both South Korea and the US seeking to bring him to trial. Since his arrest, courts in Montenegro have been deliberating over which country to extradite him to, with the process spanning several months due to complications.

Multiple decisions made by courts and the government to extradite him to the US and South Korea were later overturned by higher courts or the appellate court.

He was most recently set to be extradited to South Korea after a ruling by the Court of Appeals in early August, but the Supreme Court issued an order to postpone the process a few days later to determine if the ruling was illegal.

The final decision on Kwon’s extradition now rests with Justice Minister Bojan Božović. The outcome is expected to have significant political and economic consequences for Montenegro, particularly regarding its strategic infrastructure and relations with international partners.

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