Prosecutors’ plea for an arrest warrant against Daniel Shin, co-founder of Terraform Labs, was denied by a South Korean court.
The Seoul Southern District Court ruled on Saturday local time, stating via text message that it is difficult to assume Shin poses a flight risk or would obliterate evidence due to his actions during the inquiry.
The court added that it has similarly dismissed the arrest warrants for seven additional parties to the case. According to a Yonhap article, they include three early investors and four Terra developers.
According to Yonhap, who also cited the court, the suspect’s right to present a defense against his main charge of breaking capital market laws must be guaranteed. Following the verdict, the prosecution’s office texted, “It is difficult to understand the court’s decision.”
The court opted to reject the arrest warrants of people who allegedly generated unauthorized profits while purporting to be defending their rights to self-defense while acknowledging the gravity of the accusations, they claimed.
To determine whether to issue yet another arrest warrant, prosecutors will examine the dismissal.
In May, the sister token Luna and the TerraUSD stablecoin, which had been designed to preserve a 1:1 relationship with the dollar, both failed.
Do Kwon’s Whereabouts Unknown
The other founder of the Terra ecosystem is the cryptocurrency entrepreneur Do Kwon. His whereabouts are unknown since Seoul prosecutors have called for his arrest. He has asserted his innocence.
Should Do Kwon be charged with violating the country’s capital markets law, Kwon Ohoon of Cha & Kwon Law Offices in Seoul said on Saturday that it’s “questionable” if the court will find him guilty. He noted that the court appeared to have ruled that the prosecution’s claims that the Terra/Luna was a result of capital markets law crimes were unfounded.
According to a Terraform Labs spokesperson, the court decision “illustrates the baseless character of the prosecutors’ charges.” “With these claims behind us, our emphasis is on providing the greatest web3 ecosystem to start and scale a blockchain and shaping the future of Terra.” In a text message, Shin’s attorneys described the court’s ruling as a “sound judgment.”
