On Thursday morning, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Gary McKinnon will be extradited to the U.S. to face trial on charges of breaking into and damaging U.S. Government computers. The appearance in front of the European Court of Human Rights was McKinnon's last chance to avoid prosecution in the United States.
McKinnon loses final appeal UFO Hacker due to arrive in US within two weeks. (IMG:J.Anderson)
On July 29, Gary McKinnon lodged an appeal with the European Court of Human Rights, citing 'Article 3' of the European Convention on Human Rights (prohibition of inhuman or degrading treatment) in his request, and pointing out the conditions of detention he would face if convicted in the United States.
Thursday morning (Aug 28), the Chamber decided to refuse McKinnon's request for interim measures. Subsequently, the court said it would not block his extradition.
The charges against McKinnon stem from hacking sessions that deleted or accessed critical systems and files between February of 2001 and March of 2002. Among the systems accessed were computers owned by NASA, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the U.S. Air Force.
McKinnon's reasoning for the hacks was to uncover confidential information related to anti-gravity propulsion systems and extraterrestrial technology, which he believed the authorities were hiding from the public.
If extradited and found guilty in the U.S. courts, McKinnon could face life in prison and fines of up to $1.75 million USD.
Karen Todner, McKinnon’s lawyer, said her client was “absolutely devastated by the decision. He and his family are distraught.”
McKinnon is to be extradited to the United States within the next two weeks.
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)
Advertising
There are currently no comments for this article. Be the first to comment! (no registration required)