Hacker US extradition ruling due

Jul 31 2009

The High Court is to rule on a last-ditch bid by British "UFO eccentric" Gary McKinnon to avoid extradition to America where he faces trial for hacking into US military networks.

Lawyers for Mr McKinnon, 43, who suffers from Asperger's Syndrome, are challenging decisions by successive Home Secretaries allowing extradition to go ahead.

They are also asking two judges to overturn a refusal by Keir Starmer QC, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), to sanction a trial in this country. A UK trial would block extradition.

Mr McKinnon, from Wood Green, north London, and his supporters fear his medical condition, coupled with the stress of extradition and tough American prison conditions, could result in psychosis and suicide.

Mr McKinnon is prepared to plead guilty to computer hacking offences to avoid extradition.

But former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith decided last October to order his removal following a request from the US prosecuting authorities.

The current Home Secretary Alan Johnson has insisted he has no power to demand the trial take place in the UK.

The US authorities say Mr McKinnon was responsible for the "biggest military hack of all time", involving 97 government computers belonging to organisations including the US Navy and Nasa.

Mr McKinnon has admitted breaking into the system in 2001-2 during a period of heightened security in the wake of the September 11 2001 attacks. But he claims he was looking for evidence of extra-terrestrial life.

The US government alleges his conduct was intentional and calculated to influence and affect it by "intimidation and coercion". It says the cost of repair totalled more than 700,000 US dollars (£436,000).