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Comment by Mandatum | Hacker News Reader

The New Zealand government spent $5.8M NZD prosecuting a man for a law that holds a maximum fine of $150,000 in the country he's being prosecuted in.

Bollocks.

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I'm not sure I'm reading this right, but criminal copyright infringement has much worse penalties than that in the U.S.

If U.S. citizen who does not reside in New Zealand who is not a New Zealand citizen broke an New Zealand law while living in the U.S. operating a U.K. operation, I don't think he will be extradited to New Zealand.

If I wanted to be subject to U.S.'s laws I'd go to the U.S.

The content owners should be forced to file lawsuits in Hong Kong or New Zealand.

Otherwise it'd be as if New Zealand and Hong Kong are mere U.S. satellite states, like East Germany to the Soviet Union.

Welcome to 'international treaties', the new kind of law that you can't change by simply voting in a different party.

Welcome to 'contract law', the old kind of law that you can't change by voting in a new CEO. Not sure that I want President Trump being able to nullify the 1947 Paris Peace Treaties.

There are clear procedures for modifying and ratifying treaties for good reason.

Technically he's being extradited for copyright infringement, racketeering and money laundering. I doubt they could have extradited him for copyright alone. Whether he is actually guilty of the last two is debatable.

The US-New Zealand extradition treaty (1970) doesn't include copyright infringement, racketeering or money laundering as extraditable offenses.

The only extraditable offense that seems remotely close is:

> Receiving and transporting any money, valuable securities or other property knowing the same to have been unlawfully obtained.

Did you read the Sentencing Act? I think parent post is closer to reality.

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