Megaupload megamaniac: the mad, mad world of Kim Dotcom

Auckland judge orders Kim Dotcom to remain in custody as his colourful reputation soars

Kim Dotcom

MEGAUPLOAD co-founder Kim Dotcom remains in a New Zealand jail after being denied bail today following charges of racketeering and copyright infringement by the United States Department of Justice, but his reputation as the most colourful alleged villain of the internet age is soaring.

Dotcom – otherwise known as Kim Schmitz, a German and Finnish national who stands 6ft 6in tall and weighs somewhere between 200lb and 300lb – winked to the gallery as the judge ordered him held in custody until an extradition hearing on 22 February.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Charles Laurence is a US correspondent for The Week.co.uk. He is a former New York bureau chief for The Daily Telegraph. He divides his time between Manhattan and Woodstock, upstate New York.