A U.S. district judge has requested answers before the sentencing of Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon for defrauding investors, as indicated by court documents. The hearing is set for Thursday.
Judge Paul A. Engelmayer of the Southern District of New York posed six questions about Kwon’s case, including whether victims will have a chance to speak at sentencing and if he might evade serving time by returning to South Korea, where he faces additional charges. Responses to these questions have been requested by Dec. 10.
The downfall of Terraform, which peaked at over $50 billion in market capitalization, marked a significant event in the crypto market crash of 2022.
The judge inquired, “If Mr. Kwon is transferred to foreign custody to serve the latter part of his sentence, what assurance can the United States have that he would complete his prison term here?” He also questioned whether Kwon’s victims “are interested in being heard during sentencing?”
U.S. prosecutors are pursuing a 12-year prison sentence for Kwon, while his defense team is advocating for a five-year term.
Engelmayer further requested clarification on whether Kwon should be credited for about 17 months spent in custody in Montenegro, the nature of his pending legal risks in South Korea, how victim compensation will be handled, and whether he qualifies for sentence-reduction credits or should be subject to supervised release.
