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Comment by kijin | Hacker News Reader

> New Zealand authorities didn’t investigate the US request, but Judge Potter said that the Attorney General is not required to evaluate the legitimacy of the US order.

So the NZ Govt will seize your stuff just because some other country tells them to do so, without even making sure that all the paperwork is in place? Is that the same standard of evidence they use to justify domestic searches and seizures?

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I think that the "legitimacy of the US order" refers to the evidence that will be presented to the US grand jury, not the search warrant in New Zealand. The Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Act [1] requires that the Attorney General be satisfied that the request be related to a foreign criminal matter, but they do not have to ensure that the order would be held up in the US.

[1] http://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1992/0086/latest/D...

That makes more sense, though it still looks like a dangerous abridgment of due process if the country that actually seizes the assets feels no need to launch an independent investigation to find out whether or not the allegations have any merit.

I hope the NZ government revises their extradition treaty in this light. USA has a legal reputation of trumped up charges to force a plea deal despite no trial. Especially if they can play the card of 'money laundering' which legally allows them to seize every asset and cash.

USA is becoming a very dangerous country.

It's been that way for awhile, mostly due to the War on Drugs (although the War on Terror also helped kick things into gear on the surveillance side).

Given the sum of world history, I don't see how this ends well.

We are now between two stable states - the US will not be as an important player in the early 21st century as it was in the late 20th - and a lot is at stake right now. I can only hope we can all elect governments wise enough to ensure a smooth transition because trying to prevent - or even postpone - it will only make it more violent and unpredictable.

I read earlier reports that the procedures/paperwork for the seizure warrant was done incorrectly, thereby opening the door for it's return. Refer this article: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/news/article.cfm?c_id=3&#...

Apparently the NZ police refiled the paperwork using the proper procedures.

I was under the impression that the refiling didn't take place until after the seizure?

Regardless, I hope that the copyright extremists realize that although megaupload is gone piracy continues.

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