Megaupload founder
Kim Dotcom: “Recovering from massive stroke”
The former German internet star Kim Dotcom is threatened with extradition from his adopted home of New Zealand to the USA. According to his own statements, he now has major health problems.
The German internet entrepreneur Kim Dotcom, who is threatened with extradition to the USA, said he suffered a serious stroke. “The best medical professionals are helping me with my recovery. I will be back as soon as possible,” wrote the 50-year-old, who has lived in New Zealand since 2010, on X. “Pray for my family and me.”
The founder of the former Internet platform Megaupload’s real name is Kim Schmitz and has lived in the Pacific state since 2010. The US wants to prosecute him for copyright infringement and money laundering on a large scale. If convicted, he could face decades in prison. In 2018, Dotcom had already declared, with a view to the legal disputes, that he had major health problems after “six years of stress”.
Fight against threatened extradition
New Zealand’s Justice Minister Paul Goldsmith signed an extradition order in August – much to the annoyance of the German, who appeared combative. “I love New Zealand. I won’t leave,” he wrote on social media at the time. One of his lawyers had announced that he would take the case to the New Zealand Supreme Court.
There has been a legal dispute surrounding the entrepreneur, who was born in Kiel in 1974, for years. There have already been several proceedings up to New Zealand’s Supreme Court in Wellington to prevent his extradition.
Dotcom is one of the most colorful figures in the Internet world, but is controversial. He first appeared in the hacker scene in the mid-1990s. With the data exchange Megaupload he became a millionaire many times over. The company financed itself through advertising and paid access for subscribers. At times the site was one of the most popular websites in the world. After investigations by the US Federal Police FBI, it was shut down in 2012.
dpa
Source: Stern
I am an author and journalist who has worked in the entertainment industry for over a decade. I currently work as a news editor at a major news website, and my focus is on covering the latest trends in entertainment. I also write occasional pieces for other outlets, and have authored two books about the entertainment industry.
