Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom and his wife need more than $200,000 a month to get by, the High Court at Auckland has heard.
Dotcom, facing extradition to the United States, and his heavily pregnant wife Mona are seeking to have some of their seized assets released at a hearing on Wednesday.
Crown prosecutor Anne Toohey told the court that together Dotcom and his wife have requested that $220,000 a month in living costs be released.
Among the monthly costs requested are $24,000 for body guards, $29,000 for staff including nannies, a butler and Mrs Dotcom's personal assistant, $5000 for landline phone costs, $8500 for gas and power, and $6500 for tutoring the couple's four-year-old child.
Costs for the maintenance of the empty $30 million rented Dotcom Mansion in Coatesville, north of Auckland, have also been requested.
Surprisingly, we don't have a lot of sympathy for the Dotcoms' plight. The figures that they have presented to the Court today are absurd, and will be abhorrent to many. They are asking for more than four times as much PER MONTH as the average New Zealander earns annually.
If Kim Dotcom thinks that this is a way to sway public opinion in his favour, we'd suggest that he has been poorly advised.
And if Kim Dotcom hasn't been doing anything illegal, why does he need to spend $6000 per week on bodyguards? Hmmmm....
9 comments:
" And if Kim Dotcom hasn't been doing anything illegal, why does he need to spend $6000 per week on bodyguards? Hmmmm...."
Surely that is his business, that said I think the real question is has he broken any NZ laws and if not what the hell do we have him in custody for ?
Sovereignty of NZ is not to be taken lightly and I would for one tell the FBI to sod off. If he has broken NZ laws then we prosecute him beginning and end of story.
IH Stewart, hear hear.
This whole case reeks to high heaven.
IV2 if you had the cash and resources that Kim Dotcom has (had) you would want security guards as well.
The innocent-as-yet Mr Dotcom is asking for an appropriate amount of his own money to ensure his family can live in the style they have become used to.
I can see his problem but not yours.
I have no problem how people spend their money. If his income is legal then he can do what he wants
Hilarious - talk about the politics of envy! The very thing you've been charging critics of Key with, 'the politics of envy', around wealth and privilege, you are guilty of here.
Hilarious hypocrisy!
I agree with the other four commentators. IV2, you are the weakest link!
Hmm, have to agree with all the above. So 5-zip on this one IV2. I'm not quite sure why you've taken this stance, as you're usually very balanced in your views :)
Oh, 6-zip.
PS Rental on the Chrisco mansion alone would be $20k+/wk, say $90k/mth (maybe more).
Seems like I'm in a majority of one here!
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