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.
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.
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.