Snappy newsletters. Simple Facebook sharing. Spirited comments. Sweet features are waiting… GET THEM NOW!

Kim Dotcom Accuses FBI of Illegal File-Sharing

Cloned computers sent to the US without approval of NZ authorities

By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff

Posted Jun 7, 2012 12:25 AM CDT

(Newser) – Kim Dotcom, the MegaUpload chief fighting extradition to the US from New Zealand, says the FBI did some illegal file sharing of its own. His lawyer claims agents committed an "illegal act" by sending cloned copies of Dotcom's seized computer to the US via Fedex without a judge's consent, Wired reports. The agents, he says, "gazumped" New Zealand authorities by sending the information while assuring the government nothing would be sent.

Dotcom, currently free on bail and making ends meet on an allowance of $49,000 a month, is accused of making hundreds of millions of dollars by letting MegaUpload users share copyrighted files online. If a judge agrees with Dotcom's lawyer and orders the FBI to return the cloned data, it might make it harder to prosecute him in the US, "but it will not have any impact on the extradition proceeding here in New Zealand," an intellectual property expert says.

Kim Dotcom speaks to reporters after being released on bail earlier this year.
Kim Dotcom speaks to reporters after being released on bail earlier this year.   (AP Photo/New Zealand Herald, Brett Phibbs, File)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
My TakeCLICK BELOW TO VOTE
11%
29%
1%
55%
0%
4%
To report an error on this story, notify our editors.
COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 12 comments
techiejames
Jun 11, 2012 8:40 AM CDT
What Kim  did was allow its users to store/share their own files; nothing wrong with that.  The FBI, however, is another story.  The judge in New Zealand told them no, and they decided to do a work around by cloning--or mirroring--the originals and send them to the US via, or all things, FedEx.  Their will be chain-of-custody issues if New Zealand allows for his extradition to the US; just for this little stunt, he should not be extradited.
user99
Jun 7, 2012 10:10 PM CDT
busting megaupload is like busting the phone company for letting criminals have a conversation over the phone
user99
Jun 7, 2012 10:07 PM CDT
I'm waiting for a NZ judge to tell the FBI to go pound sand.
 

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS
Other Sites We Like:   24/7 Wall St.   |   BuzzFeed   |   Cracked   |   World History Project   |   POPSUGAR Tech   |   Business Insider   |   HuffPost Entertainment   |   NewsOne