FBI hacking suspect wins extradition fight
Computer hacking suspect Lauri Love, 33, has won his fight against extradition to the US, where a guilty verdict could have led to a life sentence. The Court of Appeal yesterday ruled that he should answer charges in the UK over alleged hacking of the FBI, US Army and Federal Reserve.
COMPUTER hacking suspect Lauri Love has won his fight against extradition to the US where a guilty verdict could have led to a life sentence.
The Court of Appeal yesterday ruled that Mr Love should answer charges in the UK over the alleged hacking of FBI, US Army and Federal Reserve computer systems.
The 33-year-old from Stradishall, Suffolk, who has Asperger’s syndrome and depression, has been fighting extradition since 2014 on the grounds that he should face trial in the UK, where the alleged offences took place.
His defence said the US prison system was not equipped to support Mr Love’s mental and physical health.
He could still answer to the allegations in the UK courts, which the Lord Chief Justice said would “recognise the gravity” of the accusations.
“If proven, these are serious offences indeed,” said his ruling.
“The Crown Prosecution Service must now bend its endeavours to his prosecution, with assistance to be expected from the authorities in the US, recognising the gravity of the allegations in this case, and the harm done to victims.”
Mr Love was arrested in 2013 and again in 2014 on charges filed in the US of breaching sensitive US government computer systems. A prison sentence in the UK is expected to be about four years. In the US it could have been 99.
In a similar case, against Gary Mckinnon, a hacker with autism who broke into the Pentagon’s systems to look for evidence of UFOS and who fought a decade-long battle against extradition, the CPS decided not to bring charges in the UK.
Theresa May, then home secretary, intervened and blocked the order against Mr Mckinnon on human rights grounds.
Mr Love said that, despite the possibility of a prison sentence in the UK if prosecuted, he was relieved, and looking forward to focusing on his degree and security work.
“It’s going to be nice for my family to breathe a bit more easily. This legal struggle has defined my life for the last four years,” he said.
Mr Love said he wants to focus on securing the UK against cyber threats from abroad.
“I do happen to have a set of skills and I’m going to devote time to making sure we have an internet that is open, available to all and free from control,” he added.
The US has 14 days to appeal and take the extradition request to the Supreme Court. A US Justice Department spokesman said: “We are reviewing the judgment of the High Court and have no further comment.”
Mr Love said he felt the judgment was definitive and hoped the US would not press ahead with an appeal.
“It wouldn’t be nice to have to continue to deal with this but we’ve made it this far; we can endure further struggles if necessary,” he said.
His family, including his sister who went into labour shortly before the hearing yesterday, said they were thrilled.
“This is a victory for justice and for my family,” said the Rev Alexander Love, his father, who is a prison chaplain. “The justice system is like a slow cooker, it takes a bit longer but what comes out tastes a lot better.”
MP Barry Sheerman, who campaigned for Mr Love in the House of Commons, said: “I don’t often cry in parliament but this has been a long campaign. It has been an emotional rollercoaster; we all had a cloud over
‘ This legal struggle has defined my life for the last four years’
our heads and now that cloud has gone.” He added that Mr Love’s victory would aid understanding of people on the autism spectrum and help boost internet security in the UK.
“If we as a society don’t use this talent, we will be missing out,” he said.
When the crowded public gallery burst into applause and cheers at the ruling, the Lord Chief Justice chided them: “Be quiet. This is not a theatre.”