Home / Capital Markets News /Report: South Korean Prosecutors Issue Arrest Warrant For Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon

Report: South Korean Prosecutors Issue Arrest Warrant For Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon

14 Sep 2022

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) has published a specially designated nationals list update (OFAC’s SDN List) that lists a number of individuals accused of being involved with Iran-related ransomware. The list further shows seven bitcoin addresses that are allegedly associated with the Iranian ransomware gang.

Following the Treasury’s Office watchdog OFAC banning the ethereum mixer Tornado Cash, OFAC published a new SDN List update on September 14, 2022. The SDN List update lists two specific companies and ten people that are accused of participating in and financing Iran-based ransomware schemes.

In the past, OFAC has accused North Korean syndicates like the infamous Lazarus Group of participating in ransomware activities. “This IRGC-affiliated group is known to exploit software vulnerabilities in order to carry out their ransomware activities, as well as engage in unauthorized computer access, data exfiltration, and other malicious cyber activities,” OFAC’s SDN List announcement states on Wednesday.

In addition to the ten individuals and the two companies listed, approximately seven BTC addresses are mentioned as well. Some of the addresses mentioned in the OFAC report have never seen a single BTC deposit. Other addresses have received BTC, like this one, that’s allegedly associated with an Iranian named Ahmad Khatibi Aghada, as the address once held 0.2931 BTC.

The September 14 SDN update is not the only update that lists “cyber-related designations, [and] Iran-related designations during the last two weeks. OFAC published an amendment to cyber-related designations on September 2, and two “Iran-related designations” on September 8 and 9, 2022. The update published on Wednesday is the only “Iran-related designations” update that contains newly added BTC addresses.

What do you think about OFAC adding seven new bitcoin addresses to the SDN List? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 6,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

NFT Sales Volume Saw a Small Uptick This Week — Moonbirds, Mutant Apes Take Top Sales

Non-fungible token (NFT) sales saw a small uptick over the last week as $658.4 million in NFT sales were recorded, up 3.35% in seven days. Out of 15 blockchains, Polygon-based NFT sales saw the largest increase in volume, jumping 106.68% ... read more.

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) has published a specially designated nationals list update (OFAC’s SDN List) that lists a number of individuals accused of being involved with Iran-related ransomware. The list further shows seven bitcoin addresses that are allegedly associated with the Iranian ransomware gang.

Following the Treasury’s Office watchdog OFAC banning the ethereum mixer Tornado Cash, OFAC published a new SDN List update on September 14, 2022. The SDN List update lists two specific companies and ten people that are accused of participating in and financing Iran-based ransomware schemes.

In the past, OFAC has accused North Korean syndicates like the infamous Lazarus Group of participating in ransomware activities. “This IRGC-affiliated group is known to exploit software vulnerabilities in order to carry out their ransomware activities, as well as engage in unauthorized computer access, data exfiltration, and other malicious cyber activities,” OFAC’s SDN List announcement states on Wednesday.

In addition to the ten individuals and the two companies listed, approximately seven BTC addresses are mentioned as well. Some of the addresses mentioned in the OFAC report have never seen a single BTC deposit. Other addresses have received BTC, like this one, that’s allegedly associated with an Iranian named Ahmad Khatibi Aghada, as the address once held 0.2931 BTC.

The September 14 SDN update is not the only update that lists “cyber-related designations, [and] Iran-related designations during the last two weeks. OFAC published an amendment to cyber-related designations on September 2, and two “Iran-related designations” on September 8 and 9, 2022. The update published on Wednesday is the only “Iran-related designations” update that contains newly added BTC addresses.

What do you think about OFAC adding seven new bitcoin addresses to the SDN List? Let us know what you think about this subject in the comments section below.

Jamie Redman is the News Lead at Bitcoin.com News and a financial tech journalist living in Florida. Redman has been an active member of the cryptocurrency community since 2011. He has a passion for Bitcoin, open-source code, and decentralized applications. Since September 2015, Redman has written more than 6,000 articles for Bitcoin.com News about the disruptive protocols emerging today.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

NFT Sales Volume Saw a Small Uptick This Week — Moonbirds, Mutant Apes Take Top Sales

Non-fungible token (NFT) sales saw a small uptick over the last week as $658.4 million in NFT sales were recorded, up 3.35% in seven days. Out of 15 blockchains, Polygon-based NFT sales saw the largest increase in volume, jumping 106.68% ... read more.

A warrant for the arrest of Do Kwon and five others has reportedly been issued by prosecutors in South Korea. The prosecutors allege that Kwon and his co-accused violated the country’s capital markets law. In addition to the arrest warrant, prosecutors will reportedly request an Interpol red notice for the Terraform Labs chief executive officer.

Prosecutors in South Korea have reportedly issued an arrest warrant for Terraform Labs co-founder and chief executive officer Do Kwon. The prosecutors allege that Kwon and five other Terraform Labs affiliates, among other charges, violated the country’s capital markets law.

Choi Sung-kook, a prosecutor at the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office, is quoted in a report by Forkast News confirming the issue of the arrest warrant. However, as per the report, Sung-kook would not be drawn into revealing the other charges that have been leveled against Kwon and his partners.

Since the spectacular collapse of the cryptocurrency LUNA (now LUNC) and the once-stable coin UST (now USTC), South Korean prosecutors have been investigating Kwon and his associates. However, until now no arrest warrant had been issued against the Terraform Labs CEO and his affiliates.

Interpol Red Notice

In the meantime, a report in Nikkei Asia quotes an unnamed “spokesperson for prosecutors” also confirming the issuing of an arrest warrant for six people.

“An arrest warrant has been issued for a total of six people, including Do Kwon, who is currently residing in Singapore,” the spokesperson is quoted saying.

Besides Kwon, the Forkast News report identified the former head of research at Terraform Labs, Nicholas Platias, and the CEO of Chai Corporation — simply known as “Han” — as the two other wanted individuals.

In addition to the arrest warrant, South Korean prosecutors reportedly said they will seek an Interpol red notice for Kwon.

Reports of South Korean prosecutors issuing an arrest warrant for Kwon and five others come just days after the price of LUNA 2.0 — the successor to Luna — surged by more than 200% in just 24 hours. However, at the time of writing, the U.S. dollar value of the token has dropped to $2.90 from a high of $6.87.

What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

Terence Zimwara is a Zimbabwe award-winning journalist, author and writer. He has written extensively about the economic troubles of some African countries as well as how digital currencies can provide Africans with an escape route.

Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons, Poetra.RH / Shutterstock.com

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Draft Law Regulating Aspects of Crypto Taxation Submitted to Russian Parliament

A bill updating Russia’s tax law to incorporate provisions pertaining to cryptocurrencies has been filed with the State Duma, the lower house of parliament. The legislation is tailored to regulate the taxation of sales and profits in the country’s market ... read more.

Source From : News

© CoinJoker 2019 | All Rights Reserved.