The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Wednesday that Terra creator Do Kwon's passport would be invalidated, as the country escalates actions against the crypto entrepreneur whose blockchain implosion earlier this year wiped off investors' $40 billion.
According to a notice posted on the South Korean government's website on Thursday, Kwon has 14 days to comply with the new order. The order comes after Interpol issued a red notice against the crypto inventor last month, urging that law enforcement authorities throughout the world find and arrest him.
The notice was made public by the government due to an "inability to deliver" the passport return order. An attached PDF document provided additional information, stating that the transfer meant Kwon's passport reissuance application may be denied.
"Our Department would like to send a 'Notice of Order for Return of Passport' to you by registered mail," the notice said. "... we inform you that the validity of your passports will be invalidated and administratively invalidated."
Although Kwon's current location is unknown, he uses Twitter to update his followers on his life.
After media reports said that South Korean authorities had intensified their efforts against him, he denied rumors that his cryptocurrency funds had been frozen on Wednesday.
The Terraform Labs founder and CEO's crypto assets worth $39.6 million have been frozen, according to the Korean media outlet News1.
Kwon has been tweeting remarks that contradict what Korean officials have said recently. He said he couldn't find an Interpol red notice on the agency's public website after prosecutors told reporters one had been issued, and he denied claims that he was "on the run," despite an outstanding arrest warrant from South Korea and statements from Singapore officials saying they couldn't find him.
The Terra ecosystem token issuer, Terraform Labs, previously stated in a statement that the arrest warrant was beyond the scope of prosecutors' power, calling the probe "highly politicized" and claimed it breached basic rights.
Normally, Kwon wouldn't be able to leave South Korea if his passport became invalid. It would probably be tough for him to leave South Korea if he wasn't there already.
In May, investors lost $40 billion because of the collapse of the Terra cryptocurrency (LUNA) and the supposed stablecoin TerraUSD (UST). This made such a stir that the prosecutors opened an inquiry into Kwon and his associates.
