According to BlockBeats, New Zealand's Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith announced on August 16 that Kim Dotcom, the founder of the defunct file-sharing website Megaupload, will be extradited to the United States after a 12-year legal battle. Dotcom has resisted extradition since a raid by the FBI in 2012. He has expressed his fondness for New Zealand and stated that he has plans for the future. The United States has accused him of causing significant economic damage to the entertainment industry.
BlockBeats previously reported that Kim Dotcom had a history of using technology to hack into various institutions and sell account passwords. In his twenties, he was imprisoned for crimes related to phone card trafficking and computer fraud. Dotcom later gained immense wealth by acquiring the near-bankrupt company Letsbuyit and subsequently changed his name to Kim Dotcom. In 2012, the U.S. government shut down Megaupload for severe copyright infringement, and Dotcom faced additional charges of extortion, fraud, and money laundering.