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The Megaupload legal case concerns a number of related criminal indictments and enforcement actions taken against Megaupload owner Kim Dotcom in various jurisdictions. On 19 January 2012 the United States Department of Justice seized and shut down the file-hosting site Megaupload.com and commenced criminal cases against its owners and others. On 20 January Hong Kong Customs froze more than 300 million Hong Kong dollars (US$39 million) in assets belonging to the company. ==Arrests in New Zealand== Acting upon a US Federal prosecutor's request, the New Zealand Police arrested Dotcom and three other Megaupload executives in a leased $30 million mansion at Coatesville near Auckland on Friday, 20 January 2012 (NZDT, UTC+13).〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/megaupload-founder-arrested-in-nz-site-shut-down-4694527 )〕 This was pursuant to a request from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation that the four be extradited for racketeering and money laundering. The raid was timed for the birthday celebration of Dotcom. Assets worth $17 million including art works and cars were seized. The four men arrested were Kim Dotcom (founder; 38 years old, from Germany), Finn Batato (Chief marketing officer (CMO); 38, from Germany), Mathias Ortmann (Chief technology officer (CTO) and co-founder; 40, from Germany) and Bram van der Kolk (29, from the Netherlands). The number of police officers involved in this operation was about 80 according to Dotcom or 20 to 30 according to the New Zealand police. On 23 January, Dotcom appeared in Auckland's North Shore District Court for a bail hearing. The crown argued against bail on the basis that he was a flight risk with a helicopter on his front lawn, while defence lawyers argued that the helicopter could not fly far enough to reach another country. They also said that Dotcom denied any criminal wrongdoing. Judge David McNaughton expressed concern at the discovery of two shotguns at Dotcom's mansion during the police raid, and deferred a decision on whether to grant bail, saying that he needed more time to review the submissions. The request for bail was turned down, with Judge McNaughton saying that "he was denied due to the risk () Mr. Dotcom would flee jurisdiction and the possibility that if he reached Germany he wouldn’t be extradited to face the charges".〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Megaupload Founder has been DENIED Bail )〕 On 3 February 2012, an appeal to the High Court of New Zealand upheld the decision to deny bail. On 22 February 2012, North Shore District Court Judge Nevin Dawson overturned the previous rulings and granted bail to Kim Dotcom,〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=WordswithMeaning! - Kim Dotcom Released From Prison )〕 saying that the risk of flight had diminished after his assets had been seized. On 5 March 2012, a formal request for the extradition to the United States of Kim Dotcom and three other senior Megaupload staff was filed in a New Zealand court. On 30 April 2012, the New Zealand High Court ruled that around $750,000 of Kim Dotcom's assets could be returned, including a Mercedes-Benz G55 AMG and Toyota Vellfire that had been seized during the raid on his home. The assets in 63 bank accounts and around thirty other vehicles remained in custody. A paperwork error by the New Zealand authorities meant that Kim Dotcom's property had been seized in January 2012 without giving proper notice. The restraining order on his property was granted in April 2012. During April 2012, US district court judge Liam O'Grady stated "I frankly don't know that we are ever going to have a trial in this matter," as he found out that the company had never been formally served with criminal papers by the US. On 28 June 2012, New Zealand High Court judge Justice Helen Winkelmann ruled that the search warrants used to raid the home of Kim Dotcom were invalid, saying "The warrants did not adequately describe the offences to which they related. They were general warrants, and as such, are invalid." On 10 July 2012, a decision on whether Kim Dotcom and other Megaupload employees should be extradited to the United States was delayed until March 2013, in order to allow further time for legal arguments to be heard. In December 2012, it was delayed until August 2013. In March 2013, Dotcom won a Court of Appeal ruling allowing him to sue the Government Communications Security Bureau (GCSB), rejecting the attorney-general's appeal against a ruling in December, 2012. On 19 February 2014, a New Zealand appeals court overruled the 28 June 2012 decision, declaring the search warrants against Kim Dotcom to be valid. Dotcom's extradition hearing is currently set for July 2014. On 8 September 2014, the Court of Appeal ruled that the New Zealand Police is to return seized electronic devices unencrypted back to Dotcom and those involved. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Megaupload legal case」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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