A little over a month has passed since Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom was jailed in New Zealand on
charges filed by the US Department of Justice, but now he's surprisingly been freed on bail. A New Zealand judge has decided that it was "very unlikely" that Dotcom had sufficient funds to flee or go into hiding after his main assets had been seized — apparently, four bank accounts were discovered in the Philippines, but they were all empty. While US prosecutors said that it was likely Dotcom had access to more funds because of his wealth, the New Zealand judge felt Dotcom was put in the position of having to "prove a negative," and thus the assertion that he might have more money wasn't enough to keep him in custody.
Somewhat humorously, part of the agreement of Dotcom's bail was that he was not allowed to use the internet, a condition that his lawyers felt was ridiculous. However, the prosecution believed there was a high risk of "reoffending" if he could get online — there were even concerns that he could start the business up in a jurisdiction where the US was powerless to stop him. Dotcom still awaits his
extradition hearing, which is now expected to take place by March 2nd.
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