Megaupload's Dotcom Extradition Hearing Delayed Until 2013

A hearing over the extradition of Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom to the US has been postponed until March 2013 by a New Zealand judge yesterday.

 

Dotcom and his co-defendants, however, do not see this as a victory.

 

“Hey DOJ, we will go to the US. No need for extradition,” Dotcom tweeted today. “We want bail, funds unfrozen for lawyers & living expenses.”

 

The US Department of Justice has accused the internet businessman of copyright theft, money laundering and racketeering over the Megaupload website, which was shut down in January. The US is seeking the extradition of Dotcom, who is currently under house arrest in Auckland.

 

However, the judge postponed the hearing due to legal arguments over the case.

 

In June, a New Zealand court said that search warrants acted on Dotcom’s home were invalid, adequately describing the offenses.

 

Dotcom responded on Twitter, stating “Extradition hearing delayed til March. Dirty delay tactics by the US. They destroyed my business. Took all my assets. Time does the rest.”

 

The New Zealand Herald reported that the FBI has frozen Dotcom’s assets around the world through legal orders. Unable to pay his legal bills, which, he told the Herald, has accumulated into the millions, Dotcom and his co-defendants have offered a deal.

 

"I have accumulated millions of dollars in legal bills and I haven't been able to pay a single cent. They just want to hang me out to dry and wait until there is no support left,” Dotcom said.

 

Dotcom has the support of Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, who has publicly denounced the US’ handling of the case.