Justice minister signs extradition order for Megaupload founder 12 years after FBI-ordered raid over filesharing site

Kim Dotcom, who is facing criminal charges relating to the defunct file-sharing website Megaupload, is to be extradited to the US, the New Zealand justice minister has said.

German-born Dotcom has New Zealand residency and has been fighting extradition to the US since 2012 following an FBI-ordered raid on his Auckland mansion.

The justice minister, Paul Goldsmith, had signed an extradition order for Dotcom, a spokesperson said on Thursday.

“I considered all of the information carefully, and have decided that Mr Dotcom should be surrendered to the US to face trial,” Goldsmith said in a statement.

In a post on X on Tuesday, Dotcom said: “The obedient US colony in the South Pacific just decided to extradite me for what users uploaded to Megaupload,” in what appears to be a reference to the extradition order.

  • FIash Mob #5678@beehaw.org
    42·
    27 days ago

    Meanwhile the guy who perpetrated the My Lai massacre just died in peace at the ripe old age of 80 and only ever served a year of house arrest.

    Awesome.

  • state_electrician@discuss.tchncs.de
    18·
    27 days ago

    This fucking guy is not a good poster child for wrongful persecution. Yes, the copyright stuff is complete bullshit. But the guy has been an asshole and a criminal for all his adult life. Let him go to jail, if a judge decides so.

      • state_electrician@discuss.tchncs.de
        12·
        27 days ago

        Bullshit. I’ve known of him for many years now, ever since he sold out his buddies to the police and worked for an infamous lawyer who sent out copyright infringement notes (!). He’s an asshole, always has been.

        • davehtaylor@beehaw.org
          10·
          27 days ago

          Anyone who holds up Kim Dotcom and/or Julian Assange as political prisoners or targets of wrongful prosecution and persecution is absolutely not someone who should be trusted for any kind of opinion

  • jarfil@beehaw.org
    9·
    27 days ago

    As well as copyright infringement, Dotcom faces more serious charges, including money laundering and racketeering. He has long argued that he should not be held liable for copyright infringement carried out using his site

    Ok… so what about that money laundering and racketeering, once again?

    Really not sure how to feel about this. The copyright infringement damage claims are bonkers, but this guy is not exactly an upstanding citizen either. He already got some jail time in the 90s, fled to NZ, changed his name to a joke, and has been involved in random shady stuff over the last decade.

  • daqu@feddit.org
    8·
    27 days ago

    I looked at his X page. He’s a big right wing conspiracy idiot. He never did anything of value, so it’s not a big loss if he spends his life in prison.