Accused hacker for hire fails in bid for release
Baratov too much of a flight risk, judge rules
HAMILTON, ONT. • An Ontario judge has deemed it too risky to free a young Hamilton man accused in the United States of a massive international hacking conspiracy, even under restrictive conditions.
Judge Alan Whitten on Tuesday ordered Karim Baratov, 22, to remain in jail while he waits for an extradition hearing over charges in the United States, despite pleas from his parents — who offered their life savings as surety, around- the- clock electronic monitoring and promised he would not touch a computer while on bail.
“Why would he stick around,” asked Whitten in his nine- page written decision.
“It appears that Baratov is highly skilled at ‘ hacking,’” he wrote. “He can continue his wealth- generating activities anywhere in the world.”
The judge noted the alleged connections Baratov has to Russian intelligence agents named as his co- accused. Whitten also questioned his parents’ ability to watch him.
Both sides acknowledged Baratov’s case is being closely watched as it takes on international significance far beyond allegations of email hacking.
Whitten, in fact, said Canada’s international reputation could be damaged if Baratov was released: “Would they be surprised that Baratov, like Houdini who escaped from his straitjacket, took flight? Not very likely.”
What Baratov and his coaccused face trial for, Whitten said, has “created individual and national misery.”
The Hamilton man “is accused of playing an instrumental role in a criminal conspiracy to hack hundreds of millions of email accounts,” says federal prosecutor Heather Graham, a Justice Canada lawyer, in court documents filed in court arguing against his release.
“He is alleged to be one of the members of the criminal organization to have personally carried out the hacking activities, harvesting vast amounts of personal and confidential information, including passwords and personal identity details, to hand over to Russian intelligence officers.
“Some of the high- profile victims specifically targeted by Baratov included Russian government and law enforcement officials.”
Graham argued Baratov faced charges for serious offences committed in association with a criminal organization. That made the hurdle for Baratov much higher, because criminal organization allegations are treated as “reverse onus” cases, meaning instead of the government needing to convince a judge to keep a person detained, Baratov’s lawyers needed to convince Whitten he should be released.
The criminal organization refers to Baratov and his three co-accused: Dmitry Dokuchaev and Igor Sushchin — who are both officers of the Russian Federal Security Service, or FSB, which is the successor organization of the Soviet-era KGB — and Alexsey Belan, described as a notorious hacker on the FBI’s “most-wanted” list.
Authorities say Baratov and Belan were the hackers for hire who targeted email accounts on the orders of the two Russian agents. Baratov was primarily responsible for hacking Google’s Gmail accounts while Belan primarily handled Yahoo email accounts.
Graham said in court that Russia could “offer harbour and safe haven” to Baratov.
The fear is heightened by the fact that one of his coaccused, Belan, was arrested on a different matter in 2013 in Greece.
When he was released on bail pending his extradition hearing, he “promptly absconded to Russia” and is now protected by Russian officials.
Baratov could also continue his criminal hacking while on bail, Graham argued. He funded a lavish lifestyle prior to his arrest, including a large, detached home in a suburb of Hamilton, and a rotating collection of luxury cars, from Lamborghini and Porsche to Mercedes and Aston Martin.
Deepak Paradkar, one of two lawyers representing Baratov, told court not to be dazzled by the “media frenzy” surrounding the case or by the Crown’s “inflated allegations.”
He said Baratov is really accused of hacking around 80 email accounts, not the 500 million at the root of the U. S. case. Nor does his client have ties to Russia or access to immense wealth.
“There is no place to which Mr. Baratov can flee,” Paradkar said.
Baratov and both of his parents testified last week under oath, also playing down any connection to Russia or a possible illegitimate source to their son’s wealth.
Baratov said he made his money selling web- hosting services and acting as consultant for people who wanted help protecting their servers from hacking and other cyber attacks. He said he had never been to Russia.
Baratov and his family speak Russian because they came to Canada in 2007 from Kazakhstan, a former Soviet Republic.
Baratov’s father, Akhmet Tokbergenova, 56, said he did not believe the U. S. allegations, partly because his son knows how the family feels about Russia and Russian authorities, clarifying: “It is absolutely negative.”
Baratov was arrested in March at his home in the Hamilton suburb of Ancaster, where he lived on his own. His parents and older sister, Sabrina, live in a house nearby.
Shortly after his arrest, his home was sold.
If convicted in the United States, Baratov could face 20 years in prison.
HE CAN CONTINUE HIS WEALTH- GENERATING ACTIVITIES ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD. — JUSTICE WHITTEN