Judge David McNaughton in Auckland denied Dotcom bail pending a hearing on February 22 on his possible extradition to face trial in the United States, saying Dotcom poses a flight risk. Dotcom, 38, insists he is innocent and poses no flight risk.
New Zealand police arrested three other Megaupload employees last week on US accusations they facilitated millions of illegal downloads of films, music and other content, costing copyright holders at least $US500 million in lost revenue. McNaughton is expected to make bail rulings on the three later this week or early next week.
In Washington, a US Justice Department official said Dutch police had arrested a fifth suspect - Andrus Nomm, 32, a citizen of Estonia and a resident of both Turkey and Estonia. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is still pending.
In all, US authorities have charged seven men in the conspiracy case and are still seeking the arrest of the remaining two men.
Authorities in the US are seeking to extradite the four men arrested in New Zealand and are also expected to seek Nomm's extradition.
