US Government Estimates Do Kwon’s Victim Count Potentially Exceeding 1,000,000 People

Do Kwon’s alleged schemes could have impacted more than 1 million victims worldwide, according to US prosecutors.

US authorities extradited Kwon, the disgraced co-founder of the Terra (LUNA) ecosystem, late last month.

Kwon faces fraud charges related to the multibillion-dollar downfall of Terra in 2022.

In a recently submitted court document, prosecutors argue that Kwon’s “constructed financial world” was propped up on “lies and manipulative and deceptive techniques used to mislead investors, users, business partners, and government regulators.”

They also outline the massive scope of Kwon’s alleged fraud.

“Ultimately, investors suffered over $40 billion in losses as a result of Kwon’s fraud. The victims in this case include, among others, individuals and entities in both the United States and abroad who purchased Terraform’s cryptocurrencies directly from Terraform or from third parties, including through cryptocurrency exchanges based in the United States and in other countries.

While it is difficult to precisely quantify the number of Kwon’s victims in light of the sheer number of purchases and sales of Terraform’s cryptocurrencies and the manner of those transactions (with many transactions in those assets occurring on foreign exchanges and through digital asset wallet or crypto trading accounts without personal identifying information), the Government estimates that the number of victims in this case exceeds hundreds of thousands of individuals and entities, and potentially totals more than one million.”

Kwon was initially arrested by authorities in Montenegro in 2023 after he was caught attempting to board a flight to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) with a forged Costa Rican passport.

After the Terra founder’s arrest, both the United States and South Korea wanted to extradite him. The highest court in Montenegro ruled in favor of the US in December.

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