Bitcache founder Kim Dotcom vows to fight extradition to US

Bitcache and Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom is determined to resist extradition to the US, claiming political persecution, and vows to remain in New Zealand.

Kim Dotcom, the German-Finnish internet entrepreneur known for his controversial political views, faces a new challenge after New Zealand Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith signed an order for his extradition to the United States.

The move reignites a legal battle spanning more than a decade, in which Dotcom and his legal team vowed to fight the decision tooth and nail, according to a report by The New Zealand Herald. Dotcom has lived in New Zealand since 2010 and has been threatened with extradition since 2012, following a dramatic global operation that led to his arrest.

The US Department of Justice has charged Dotcom with a number of serious crimes, including criminal copyright infringement, money laundering, racketeering and wire fraud, related to his role in Megaupload’s operations. US authorities accused the platform of facilitating widespread piracy and profiting from the illegal distribution of copyrighted content.

In a defiant post on X on August 15, the crypto entrepreneur who once promised to bring Bitcoin (BTC) to the masses via Bitcache and Megaupload said, “I love New Zealand. I’m not leaving,” signaling a clear intention to remain in the country despite the looming threat of extradition.

Kim Dotcom alleges legal irregularities and political persecution

Dotcom’s legal team – led by Ira Rothken – confirmed plans to seek judicial review of extradition order separate X textRothken also highlighted numerous legal irregularities affecting Dotcom’s case, including an illegal government raid on his family’s home, illegal surveillance, and the concealment and destruction of key evidence.

Our legal team is working towards a judicial review in the High Court @KimDotcom In New Zealand.

After 12+ years of injustice:
– Illegal government raid on family home
-Illegal espionage (Prime Minister apologized)
-Preservation of evidence
-Destruction of evidence
-US blocked legal funding
-US judge withdraws from case…

— Ira Rothken (@rothken) August 15, 2024

The longtime US critic claims his legal troubles stem from his support for WikiLeaks and its founder Julian Assange, who recently pleaded guilty to espionage charges and returned to Australia after years of fighting extradition to the US.

In another series of posts on the X site, Dotcom suggested that his donations to WikiLeaks, including a $100,000 donation shortly after he was released on bail, may have led to the US government tracking him.

It all started with me being a big donor @Wikileaks Julian after exposing US war crimes with sideline murder video. And as soon as I got bail I created Mega and sent the first $100,000 I ever earned to Wikileaks. I would do it again. Damn the criminal US government. https://t.co/QcJvq7wM61

— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) August 15, 2024

Dotcom also drew parallels between Biden’s situation and former President Donald Trump’s legal battles, arguing that the Justice Department under President Joe Biden targeted him for political reasons.

It solves the ‘cache’ problem in Bitcache. It removes all blockchain limitations. Wait 🙂

— Kim Dotcom (@KimDotcom) August 5, 2016

Founded in 2016, Bitcache aimed to leverage Bitcoin by offering affordable microtransactions, where file transfers on Megaupload would be linked to Bitcoin transactions, making it much harder to identify users of the file-sharing platform. However, in 2023, a New Zealand court liquidated Bitcache after the company allegedly owed more than $13 million to various creditors.