The US court will re-examine Do Kwon on 1/26. If the charges are proven, he may face a sentence of up to 130 years.

Due to the TerraUST Stable Coin collapse, Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon has been accused of 9 charges including wire fraud, securities fraud, and commodities fraud. If convicted, he could face a sentence of up to 130 years. The U.S. New York Federal Court recently announced that the trial for this case will begin on 1/26.

The court will open on 1/26, and the judge encourages plea bargaining.

According to reports, the New York federal court held a preliminary hearing on 1/8, and Judge Paul Engelmayer announced that the trial will begin on 1/26. Engelmayer emphasized that the length of the trial is quite rare in his career. However, considering the complexity of the case and Do Kwon's involvement in other international lawsuits, Engelmayer approved the defense lawyers to have more time to prepare for the trial.

The prosecutor's office searches for personal information and transaction records. The relevant data is nearly several TB.

The prosecution also plans to obtain Do Kwon's email, Twitter account permissions, and search warrants for relevant transaction records, and review Do Kwon's data on the cryptocurrency exchange. The prosecution pointed out that Do Kwon frequently made comments on Twitter during the collapse of TerraUST, and his last post appeared shortly before his arrest in 2023, and these contents may become key evidence.

The prosecution revealed that the case evidence includes several TB of data, some of which came from four mobile phones and recording files obtained from Do Kwon during his detention in Montenegro, as well as social media accounts. Some of the recording files were made without Do Kwon's knowledge, and these files were recorded privately by non-governmental individuals. The prosecution emphasized that this data was also used in the civil lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against Do Kwon, in which the case ultimately ruled that Do Kwon and Terraform were involved in charges of wire fraud, securities fraud, etc.

International extradition struggle and new charges, securities law becomes a key trial

Arrested in Montenegro, Europe, in 2023, Do Kwon was sent to the United States for trial at the end of 2024 after more than a year of extradition wrestling, but still faces South Korean charges. He faces nine felony charges, including securities fraud, wire fraud, commodity fraud and conspiracy to launder money. Prosecutors noted that the ninth money laundering charge was only added in 2024 and planned to apply to the Montenegro government for an exemption from the "specific rules" in the extradition agreement to ensure that the charge was established.

Judge Engelmayer specifically pointed out that the applicability of securities law in this case will be the key to the trial. He stated that the jury needs to understand clearly whether Terraform's encrypted assets should be considered as investment contracts. The prosecution cited a previous SEC ruling that classified Terraform's assets as securities and requested that Terraform Labs pay a $4.5 billion fine to compensate victims.

Is it plea bargaining or a lengthy trial?

Judge Engelmayer suggested that the prosecution and defense consider plea bargaining to avoid prolonging the trial. According to the documents submitted by the prosecution, Do Kwon's victims may number in the hundreds of thousands, with global implications. The trial is expected to last for six weeks, with the prosecution needing approximately four weeks to present testimonies and evidence. If convicted, Do Kwon could face a sentence of up to 130 years.

(Do Kwon denies fraud allegations: up to $40 billion cryptocurrency coin collapse case enters US trial)

This article US court retrial Do Kwon on 1/26, if convicted may face up to 130 years in prison first appeared in ChainNews ABMedia.