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US files extradition papers for Mega four

By | Published on Monday 5 March 2012

MegaUpload

The US authorities have formally filed their extradition papers with New Zealand’s Ministry Of Justice as they seek to force four of the people behind controversial file-transfer and video-share platform MegaUpload to face charges of copyright infringement, money laundering and racketeering in the American courts.

As previously reported, four Mega execs, including top man Kim ‘Dotcom’ Schmitz, were arrested in New Zealand in January at the request of the US and are currently under house arrest in the country. US authorities, who shut down the entire Mega network, claim the company deliberately infringed copyright on both its file-transfer and YouTube-style video site in order to drive up traffic, subscriptions and ad sales, building a multi-million dollar empire on the back of that infringing activity. Schmitz and his colleagues, though, say their operation was legal.

The extradition papers are currently confidential, and applications by local media to see them will have to be reviewed by a judge, who will likely consult the prosecution and defendants before deciding what to make public. As previously reported, America’s extradition claim won’t be heard in court until 20 Aug.



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