Police seized millions of pounds, a vast collection of luxury cars and sawn-off shotguns yesterday when they raided the mansion of a man accused of being one of the world's biggest internet pirates.
Swooping on convicted fraudster Kim Dotcom's £16million home outside Auckland by helicopter, officers had to cut their way in to arrest him after the founder of the MegaUpload website retreated into a fortified safe room.
Dotcom, 37 -- nicknamed Dr Evil -- has Finnish and German citizenship. He and six of his employees face charges by U.S. prosecutors in what they say is one of the biggest criminal copyright theft cases ever brought.
MegaUpload, which the U.S. government shut down yesterday, is a Hong Kong-based 'cyberlocker' service that allows users to download pirated films, TV shows, music and e-books with just a few clicks.
It is accused of costing copyright owners £322million in lost earnings and of making £113million by selling advertising and premium subscriptions.
A neighbour of Dotcom's told the New Zealand Herald she heard a helicopter circling the property at about 6.30am.
'I thought it was his private helicopter, which is parked up behind the trees, and I thought he was going out for breakfast, as he sometimes does,' said the neighbour, whose name was not given.
'I thought "this is going on a bit long" and it was a bit annoying at that time of the morning and so I got up and realised it was a police helicopter.
'It was there for about an hour and then my friend texted me that a lot of cops had arrived.'
Police said that in total officers served 10 search warrants at businesses and homes related to Dotcom around the city of Auckland.
Police spokesman Grant Ogilvie confirmed that the seized cars included a Rolls Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe worth more than $400,000 as well as several Mercedes.
Two short-barreled shotguns and a number of valuable artworks were also confiscated, he added.
Along with the assets, Police seized more than $8million invested in New Zealand financial institutions, which has now been placed in a trust pending the outcome of the cases.
Although music stars such as Kanye West and Alicia Keys have supported MegaUpload, film and record companies say the seven-year-old file-sharing site is making a fortune off their work without paying them a penny.
Hollywood film companies have been the main victims of piracy. The seven accused MegaUpload executives -- including two other Germans and a Dutchman also seized in New Zealand -- are each charged with five counts of racketeering, copyright infringement and conspiracy, and could be jailed for up to 20 years.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2089138/Megaupload-shut-Police-raid-r...
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