Kim Dotcom extradition to US can go ahead, New Zealand high court rules

[uk666 5,298]

Kim Dotcom extradition to US can go ahead, New Zealand high court rules

 

 

The high court in New Zealand has ruled Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom can be extradited to the United States to face a multitude of charges including money laundering and copyright breaches.

 

US authorities had appealed for Dotcom’s extradition to face 13 charges including allegations of conspiracy to commit racketeering, copyright infringement, money laundering and wire fraud.

 

The German national, who has permanent residency in New Zealand, faces up to 20 years in jail if convicted in the US of piracy, which authorities say cost copyright owners hundreds of millions of dollars.

 

It is nearly five years since Dotcom, a self-described “internet freedom fighter”, was arrested in a dramatic police raid on his mansion near Auckland after the FBI shut down Megaupload’s servers.

 

Dotcom claimed Megaupload was a genuine file-sharing site that did its best to police copyright infringement but had 50 million daily users and could not control every aspect of their activity.

 

Denying any wrongdoing, Dotcom has accused US authorities of pursuing a vendetta against him on behalf of politically influential Hollywood studios.

 

The FBI alleges Megaupload netted more than US$175m in criminal proceeds and cost copyright owners more than US$500m by offering pirated content.

 

A statement from Dotcom’s barrister Ron Mansfield said the outcome was “extremely disappointing” but his legal team were far from defeated and planned to appeal the extradition order in the “politically charged and misunderstood case”.