Court rules Dotcom can be extradited
The High Court has found that alleged internet pirate Kim Dotcom and his associates are eligible to be extradited to the US.
However, the between Dotcom and the United States Government is far from over, with his lawyer promising to take the case to the Court of Appeal – and predicting that he will win in the end.
The US claims that Dotcom, Mathias Ortmann, Bram van der Kolk and Finn Batato were members of a worldwide criminal organisation that engaged in criminal copyright infringement and money-laundering with an estimated loss to copyright holders of more than US$500 (NZ$696m).
In a ruling yesterday – more than five years after authorities launched a Swat-style raid to arrest Dotcom at his Auckland mansion – the court found that the evidence was sufficient to establish a prima facie case on all counts. However, it also ruled in favour of one of Dotcom’s key legal arguments.
The decision was in response to an appeal by Dotcom and his associates against an earlier district court ruling that they should be surrendered to the US.
The case has been touted as one of the largest criminal copyright cases ever brought by America.
In December 2015, Judge Dawson found in North Shore District Court that Dotcom and his associates were eligible for extradition. They appealed to the High Court, million claiming that the judge made errors of law in virtually every aspect of his eligibility finding. The US also appealed against several aspects of that judgment.
Dotcom’s lawyer, Ron Mansfield, said yesterday the matter would now have to go the Court of Appeal. A best-case scenario was a hearing at the end of the year, but it was more likely the case would be pushed out until 2018.
He was confident this ‘‘complex and unprecedented legal case’’ would be resolved in Dotcom’s favour.
‘‘We’re disappointed but we’re one step closer to achieving the right outcome for Kim. It’s a long battle, but long battles are often successful battles.
‘‘Whilst many have struggled to get beyond the United States’ hype in this politically charged and misunderstood case, an objective observer will now realise that there is much more to this case,’’ Mansfield said.
In his 363-page ruling, Justice Murray Gilbert said he accepted one of the main planks of Dotcom’s argument: that online communication of copyright protected works to the public is not a criminal offence in New Zealand.
‘‘However, I have concluded that the appellants are not correct in asserting that the general criminal law fraud provisions in the Crimes Act cannot apply in cases of copyright infringement.’’
Dotcom said in a tweet: ‘‘I’m no longer getting extradited for copyright. We won on that. I’m now getting extradited for a law that doesn’t even apply.’’