Czech police arrest Russian accused of US hacking

By bne IntelliNews October 20, 2016

Czech police announced on October 19 that they have arrested a Russian citizen suspected of involvement in hacking US targets.

The arrest was made at a Prague hotel in conjunction with the FBI. A court will now decide whether to extradite the suspect, who was not named. That will put the Czech Republic in the middle of the high tension between Washington and Moscow.

Interpol had issued a “Red Notice” on the suspect seeking his arrest, Czech police pointed out, according to newswires. However, details are scant, including what targets the man is accused of hacking. According to the Wall Street Journal, one target was the LinkedIn social network site.

The US said recently that it is now convinced Russia is behind a series of hacks planned to influence the forthcoming presidential election. Russia has ridiculed the claim, insisting it favours neither Donald Trump – who has professed he would offer Moscow friendlier relations - nor Hilary Clinton.

Russia has a track record of expressing anger at countries working with the US to detain its citizens. While the Czech president regularly blasts the Western sanctions against Russia, and insists Prague should build better relations with Moscow, the Czech government’s foreign policy has remained close to Washington's and Brussels.

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