Megaupload Founder Kim Dotcom to Be Extradited to US

Kim Dotcomcreator Megaloadone of the most popular online file sharing services of the early 2000s, will be extradited to the USNew Zealand Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith confirmed Things who signed the order for his extradition. The German-born businessman has lived in the ocean country since 2010.

“I have received extensive advice from the Department of Justice on this matter. I have carefully reviewed all of the information and have determined that Mr. Dotcom should be surrendered to the United States for trial,” the official said.

This is not the first time that Kim Dotcom has been rumoured to be extradited to the US. The aforementioned faces several criminal charges in North America for facilitate piracy of copyrighted material via Megaupload. A practice that would cost film, television studios and record labels more than $500 million in losses.

Kim Dotcom himself referred to the extradition order against him in a post on X (Twitter). “A docile American colony in the South Pacific has decided to extradite me for something users uploaded to Megaupload without my request, and for something copyright holders could remove with direct access instantly and without question. But: “Who cares? like now,” he shared on his profile.

Kim Dotcom faces criminal charges for facilitating piracy via Megaupload

The argument put forward by Kim Dotcom is that he cannot be blamed for the content that users uploaded to Megaupload because he had no control over it. However, the US claims that the businessman encouraged paying users to upload music, movies and TV series to the platform. which allowed her to earn more than $175 million in revenue..

As for the extradition, it is not known when it might take place. Minister Goldsmith said Reuters which gave Dotcom a “short period of time” to consider its decision and seek appropriate advice. Via X (Twitter), the Megaupload creator reported that will appeal and that he has plans to continue working in Oceania. “I love New Zealand. I’m not going anywhere,” he wrote a few hours ago.

Kim Dotcom has lived in New Zealand since 2010. In 2012, she made international news after her mansion was raided at the request of the FBI. Since then, The United States has repeatedly attempted to extradite him.but he has not achieved this yet. In some cases, due to the refusal of local authorities, in other cases, due to the businessman’s appeals. It is still unknown whether the story will be resolved differently this time.

Aside from appealing the new extradition order, Dotcom has not specified how he plans to avoid being transferred to North America for his trial. “My family lives in the safest place on the planet. My plan is to stay here and hope I’m wrong. If the world changes direction, it will be under new leadership, in which case everything will be fine, including my family,” he said.

In 2023, two of Kim Dotcom’s former Megaupload associates were sentenced to more than two years in prison. Matthias Ortmann And Bram van der Kolk They had reached a deal with New Zealand’s justice system to avoid his extradition to the United States. Upon hearing the news, Dotcom accused them of wanting to shift the blame onto him in exchange for “lenient sentences.”