Nearly four years after police rappelled into his New Zealand mansion and cut him from a safe room, German tech entrepreneur and would-be hip-hop star Kim Dotcom may be about to face the music.
A New Zealand court hearing starting on Monday will determine whether he will face charges of copyright infringement, racketeering and money laundering in the US related to the Megaupload file-sharing site he founded in 2005.
Known for his hip-hop inspired photo shoots with scantily clad women and luxury cars, Dotcom had assets including computers, art works, a Cadillac and bank accounts holding millions of dollars frozen after the 2012 raid in the hills outside Auckland.
US authorities say Dotcom and three co-accused cost film studios and record firms more than $500 million and generated more than $175 million by encouraging paying users to store and share copyrighted material, such as films and television shows.
Megaupload accounted for about 4 per cent of total traffic on the internet in its heyday as users stored and shared files containing everything from wedding videos to Hollywood films.
- (Reuters)
