Bail nixed! Yahoo ‘hacker’ could vamoose

A judge denied bail Tuesday to a Canadian man accused in a massive hack of Yahoo e-mails, arguing that he would likely flee if released from jail.

Karim Baratov, 22, has alleged ties to Russian agents and access to significant amounts of cash, making him a serious flight risk if freed on bail, a prosecutor said Tuesday.

Baratov was arrested last month and faces extradition to the US. He was indicted in the US for computer hacking along with three other people, including two alleged Russian intelligence agents.

American officials have said Baratov has the money to leave Canada and the ability to destroy evidence while on the run.

Justice Alan Whitten denied bail in a written decision, saying Baratov appeared to be highly skilled at hacking and calling the US case far from weak.

“Baratov is a flight risk. He could instantaneously access the funds,” the judge wrote. “He can ply his trade from anywhere in the world.”

Prosecutor Heather Graham noted earlier that Baratov owned a number of luxury cars and flaunted his lifestyle on social media.

She said he has Web mail and PayPal accounts with “large unknown sums of money” accessible anywhere.

She also said there is evidence Baratov may have been trafficking in identity information. And there are allegations he continued hacking while on vacation in Jamaica.

Meanwhile, the bad news for Yahoo continued to pile up when it was hit with a lawsuit saying it failed to safeguard more than $17 million it pledged to help jailed Chinese dissidents.

The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday by a group of Chinese dissidents, accuses Yahoo of “willfully turning a blind eye” while Harry Wu, a highprofile political activist charged with administering the funds, used them for personal gain.

Only $700,000 of the $17.3 million settlement fund has actually been used to help jailed dissidents, according to the lawsuit.