He fought bitterly against his extradition for twelve years – and now he seems to have lost: On Thursday, New Zealand’s Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith (52) signed an extradition order for the Internet mogul Kim Dotcom (50). His deportation to the USA thus seems certain.
The German faces up to 20 years in prison in the USA for copyright infringement. Dotcom defiant on X after the decision: “I love New Zealand. I’m not leaving.”
Kim Schmitz’s daily earnings: $115,000
This is what it’s about: Kim Schmitz – the real name of the man from Kiel – founded the online platform Megaupload in Hong Kong in March 2005. It made it possible to download files (films, music) that other users had previously uploaded. 150 million people registered.
According to the FBI, the northern German is said to have earned around 115,000 dollars (104,134 euros) a day since 2010. In 2010, he moved to a luxury property in New Zealand. An incredible rise for the former secondary school student, who tried to make money early on with shady online businesses and was sentenced to probation for the first time for fraud in 1994.
Kim Dotcom with his third wife Elizabeth Donnelly leaving court in Auckland, New Zealand in 2016
On January 19, 2012, the bubble burst: Megaupload was closed by the FBI and Kim Dotcom was charged with, among other things, conspiracy to form a criminal organization and copyright infringement.
The accusation: Megaupload was planned from the beginning as a gigantic fraud tool and the founders promoted copyright infringements.
Dotcom defended himself, saying he could not be held responsible for the platform’s users acting illegally and sharing material that was protected by copyright.
Dotcom is determined to stay in New Zealand
The authorities were not convinced by this argument: Kim Dotcom was arrested but released shortly afterwards. Since then he has been fighting in court against his extradition to the USA. Dotcom does not want to accept the current decision either. As his lawyer announced, work is underway to bring the case before the Supreme Court of New Zealand.
If this does not succeed, one thing is clear: In the USA the authorities will not be as lenient with him as the New Zealanders. The FBI has been waiting since 2012 to finally bring Kim Dotcom to justice.