Alleged Yahoo hacker seeks release
U.S. warning Canada to keep him in custody
Karim Baratov, the 22-yearold Canadian arrested last month in a massive hacking case involving Russian federal agents, promises to not touch a computer or any other electronic device if he is released from jail while waiting to fight his extradition to the United States.
“I will not access any electronic devices whatsoever, including computers and mobile devices,” Baratov says in a sworn statement filed in Ontario Superior Court ahead of Wednesday’s bail hearing in Hamilton, Ont. “I am agreeable to any and all conditions imposed on me.”
His promise though, has not swayed the federal government.
Prosecutors are pressing for Baratov to remain in custody until a court decides whether he should be turned over to the U.S. Department of Justice to face trial as one of four alleged co-conspirators in what officials have called one of the largest data breaches in history — the hack of Yahoo that exposed 500 million user accounts.
Fuelling further concern is $30,000 in cash police found in his suburban Hamilton house during a search after his arrest last month.
In new documents filed in court, Canadian authorities are warned by the United States not to release Baratov.
Authorities reproduce 2012 Internet forum posts attributed to Baratov in which he claims to travel frequently to Russia. The post says he is looking to buy an air gun version of a Makarov semiautomatic pistol that was popular in the Soviet military when in Russia. The posts says he is going to Russia again shortly and “I don’t care about the price.”
The gun is “just like a real Makarov I used to have,” the forum posts say. The U.S. says this “presents a different picture” from his parents’ statements he has never been to Russia.
“Baratov presents a danger to the community because of his skill and ability to hack into computers and unlawfully acquire the identities and personal identifying information of victims from anywhere in the world,” writes John H. Hemann, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of California, where Baratov was indicted.
He “has no known legitimate source of income, yet possesses substantial wealth which is accessible from anywhere in the world,” Hemann says.
Further, he warns that Baratov’s co-accused are evading U.S. authorities, including one who fled to Russia after his release on bail and two Russian intelligence officers who remain in Russia.
Copies of social media posts made by Baratov prior to his arrest — in which he is seen with luxury sports cars, holding wads of cash and claims he was expelled from high school — are also filed in court.
The U.S. highlights an Instagram photo, a drawing of himself mimicking the famous fictional spy James Bond — “the famous shot of Bond pointing a gun that begins most of the movies,” U.S. authorities say — but holding computer equipment instead of a gun.
“This image … combines elements of spy and hacking symbolism,” Hemann says.
Arguing against the allegations of the U.S. government are Baratov’s mother and father, who are promising
NO KNOWN LEGITIMATE SOURCE OF INCOME, YET (HE) POSSESSES SUBSTANTIAL WEALTH.
to make sure their son behaves if released while waiting for his extradition hearing.
His mother, Dinara Tokbergenova, 47, says she was “shocked and concerned” when her son was arrested, but adds he was living on his own and not under her roof at the time.
That will change if he is released from jail, she says in a sworn affidavit filed in court in anticipation of the bail hearing.
“I was not supervising him at the time but now that I am aware, I will be monitoring him 24/7 with the assistance of my husband and we will be taking appropriate measures to keep him away from any and all computer activity,” she says.
Dinara has a history degree in Kazakhstan but found Kazak history not in high demand in Canada after the family emigrated. She went to college for a nursing diploma and works at St. Joseph’s Villa nursing home in Hamilton as a full-time registered practical nurse.
Baratov came to Canada from Kazakhstan with his family on March 30, 2007. He became a Canadian citizen in 2011.
“Kazakhstan does not allow dual citizenship, therefore my Kazakhstan citizenship was voluntarily renounced in 2011. I surrendered my (Kazakhstan) passport in Ottawa,” Baratov says in his own affidavit.
He lived with his parents and his older sister, Sabrina, on Moorland Crescent and attended Ancaster High School until he graduated in 2013, he says.
“I maintained above average grades,” he says of his schooling.
He moved out of the family home in 2015, when he purchased his own large, detached house nearby, at 56 Chambers Dr.
“And have lived on my own until I was arrested,” he says. Even after moving out, the family remained close.
“Since 2015 I would still see my parents and sister almost every day for dinner and holiday functions, maintaining regular interaction with them through family activities and chores.”
His father, Akhmet, 56, was a zoo engineer before coming to Canada. After high school he studied in Moscow and obtained a PhD in agriculture. In Canada he had difficulty finding work, saying he was “overqualified.”
He started a consulting business called Genetics Agro Trade International. He now works as a veterinary biologist for TOO Vetactive, which has taken him to Kazakhstan four times a year. Since his son’s arrest, he said he would no longer travel and will work only from home.
That will allow him to keep a close eye on his son, he says.
Baratov’s father says he will keep all computers and cellphones locked in a metal safe when he or his wife or daughter are not using them, including overnight.
“I have a very good relationship with my son and he listens to my advice and supervision. I have never had a discipline problem with him. He has always been a loving and supportive son. We have always gotten along with each other,” Akhmet says in a sworn statement.
Baratov’s parents are promising the full value of their suburban home in the community of Ancaster — $845,000 — in support of their son’s compliance.
Baratov is scheduled to appear in court for a bail hearing on Wednesday morning.
Amedeo DiCarlo, Baratov’s lawyer, in the notice of application for Baratov’s interim release, says his client has no criminal record, was arrested without incident, and has no ties to other countries.
He proposes a release plan that would see Baratov live in “strict house-arrest” style with his parents and sister at his parents’ house with an ankle monitoring bracelet.