Charged with 9 counts and imprisoned for up to 130 years! Do Kwon "firmly pleaded not guilty" in US premiere

Do Kwon, co-founder of Terraform Labs, was extradited to the United States for trial. He appeared in court for the first time on January 2 and maintained his innocence, pleading not guilty to the criminal charges.

According to Reuters, Do Kwon appeared in Manhattan court on Thursday, where his lawyer Andrew Chesley pleaded 'not guilty' on his behalf and stated that he has no intention of applying for bail. The judge subsequently ordered him to remain in custody until the next hearing on January 8th.

"Inner City Press" reported that Do Kwon appeared in court that day wearing a "gray-green sweater" and smiling with his lawyer, appearing to be in a relaxed mood.

On Thursday, the US prosecutors released a nine-count indictment accusing Do Kwon of conspiracy to commit fraud, commodity fraud, telecommunications fraud, securities fraud, conspiracy to manipulate the market, and money laundering. These charges are closely related to his role in the 2022 Terra ecosystem collapse, which caused a massive shock in the cryptocurrency market at the time, resulting in global investors losing 40 billion dollars.

The US Department of Justice stated that if all charges are proven, Do Kwon could face a maximum sentence of 130 years.

In the same day's court documents, the prosecution pointed out that Do Kwon built a false 'financial world' with 'lies and manipulative deceptive means', intending to mislead investors, users, business partners, and government regulatory agencies.

In fact, the core product of Terraform Labs does not operate well as claimed by Do Kwon, but creates a seemingly normal and decentralized financial system through manipulation to attract investors.

In addition to the criminal charges, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil lawsuit against Do Kwon as early as February 2023. At the end of March this year, the SEC formally opened the trial against Terraform Labs, but Do Kwon did not appear in court at that time.

In April this year, the jury ruled that Terraform Labs and Do Kwon misled investors, constituting civil fraud and should be held accountable.

According to a later settlement agreement with the US SEC, Terraform Labs agreed to pay nearly $4.5 billion in illegal proceeds and civil fines to settle this civil securities fraud lawsuit, of which $204 million must be borne by Do Kwon personally.

<Facing 9 charges and a maximum of 130 years in prison! Do Kwon appeared in court in the U.S. and 'strongly denies' the charges.> This article was first published in 'Blocktempo'.