Internet abuzz after security expert tied to WikiLeaks vanishes

OSLO, NORWAY — In a remote Norwegian town north of the Arctic Circle, a cybersecurity expert with ties to WikiLeaks checked out of a hotel, dressed in khaki hiking gear and carrying heavy baggage.

That was on Aug. 20. No one has reported seeing him since.

The disappearance of Arjen Kamphuis, 46, has so far flummoxed a widening police investigation that has chased stray clues and false leads in Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. Norwegian police have released statements saying that they have no idea whether he was a victim of foul play, but that they “are open to all possibilities.”

The uncertainty, and Kamphuis’ links to WikiLeaks, the anti-secrecy organization that has run afoul of governments and other powerful interests, has the internet buzzing with conspiracy theories. Some suggest a kidnapping — or worse — involving Russia, the CIA, MI6, Islamists or the Clintons, while others ask if he intended to disappear, possibly on some secret assignment for WikiLeaks.

Feeding the speculation is that Bodo, the town where he was last seen, is home to Norway’s main military airbase, the armed forces’ joint operations centre is nearby, and part of the country’s cyberdefence centre is hidden in a mountain outside town. Investigators have ruled out any connection between the military presence and his disappearance.

Friends say Kamphuis, who is Dutch, was genuinely in Norway for vacation, had been there a few times before, and had plans to return to the Netherlands.