Auckland Court Rules in Favour Of Kim Dotcom; Internet Party To Be In US Soon

A New Zealand court has ruled in favour of Internet mogul Kim Dotcom after the United States attempted to have him taken into custody. The court in Auckland decided that Dotcom, a German native but now lives in New Zealand, has not violated any bail condition and therefore not a flight risk.

According to reports, the founder of the file-sharing site Megaupload has been on bail since February 2012 as he fends off efforts of U.S. authorities to extradite him to face charges of copyright infringement, racketeering and money-laundering.

The Guardian said the judge had dismissed the U.S. government's claims that Dotcom had hidden a large amount of money before attempting to leave the country. According to Judge Nevin Dawson's ruling, there was no evidence that Dotcom has stockpiled money and it would be inappropriate to deprive him of his freedom. The judge further said that the Megaupload founder had already spent a substantial amount of time and money in efforts to remain in New Zealand.

Dotcom told the court that the freeze on his assets had left him "broke" and unable to pay his legal fees. His shares from his company Mega were seized by the Motion Picture Association of America in a separate civil case filed against him.

Despite avoiding jail, Dotcom's bail conditions have been increased with a ban from using his helicopter and sea vessels for travel. He told reporters waiting outside the Auckland court that the attempt of the U.S. was another case of "harassment and bullying." He accused the Crown and the U.S. of using his moment of weakness to "make up" a case against him for his alleged violation of bail conditions.

Meanwhile, the New Zealand Herald reports that Dotcom has recently revealed his plans on Twitter about setting up an Internet Party in the U.S. in 2015. He told his followers to stay tuned for celebrity founders from the film, music and Internet industry.

The Internet mogul has invested more than $3 million into the New Zealand Internet Party which was created before the 2014 election in the country. He further revealed on the social media site that the party in the U.S. will be "well-funded and run by American citizens."