The Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office has arrested Yoo Mo, head of general business operations at Terraform Labs, according to a report from local media outlet JTBC.
Yoo is reportedly the “key aide” to Terraform Labs co-founder and CEO Do Kwon.
This is the first arrest in the ongoing Terra investigation that comes after a bench warrant issued by prosecutors on Wednesday, per the report.
Terra's Do Kwon Denies Reports That Authorities Froze $39.6M of His Crypto
TerraForm Labs CEO Do Kwon denied reports that South Korean prosecutors have frozen another $39.6 million worth of his crypto assets after it was reported by Korean outlet News1. “Once again, I don’t even use KuCoin and OkEx, have no time to trade, no funds have been frozen,” he wrote. “I don’t know whose funds they’ve frozen, but good for them, hope they use it for good.” His mention of crypto exchanges OKX and KuCoin was in reference to a report from last month that the companies had cooperat...
Yoo is charged with violating the Capital Markets Act and fraud by manipulating the market price of the TerraUSD (UST) stablecoin. Details of the arrest, such as the place and time, remain unclear.
The Seoul Southern District Court is expected to make a final decision on whether or not to grant the bench warrant within a day.
Decrypt has reached out to the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office for comments and will update the article should we hear back.
Police on the hunt for Kwon
Yoo is one of the Terra associates for whom South Korean authorities issued an arrest warrant last month, alongside Kwon.
Despite the widespread investigation of the Terra collapse, Kwon denied allegations that the project was a “fraud.” He also claimed that he had personally lost nearly all his net worth in Terra’s crash.
Kwon’s statements didn’t stop Interpol from approving South Korean prosecutors’ request to issue a red notice for him.
South Korean Authorities Officially Void Do Kwon’s Passport
The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced yesterday that the passport of Terra’s Do Kwon would be canceled in 14 days. The Ministry also ordered that the passport be returned to authorities. The statement read, “if you [Kwon] keep the passport, the validity of your passport will be invalidated (administratively invalidation).” Kwon, if he chooses not to surrender his documents, will not be allowed to use them and will be restricted from a reissuance, making it difficult for him to...
Interpol red notices are issued for fugitives wanted either for prosecution or to serve a sentence, acting as a request to law enforcement worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition, surrender, or similar legal action.
Earlier this week, Kwon made a rare appearance on Twitter to deny reports that South Korean prosecutors have frozen $39.6 million worth of his crypto assets.
In another sign that the circle may be closing in on the Terraform co-founder, the South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced yesterday that Kwon’s passport would be invalidated.
