05 February 2018•Update: 05 February 2018
By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON
A British student accused of hacking into American government websites will not be extradited to the U.S., according to a high court ruling Monday.
The appeal court’s decision came after Lauri Love, 32, argued that he should be tried in the U.K. and he would be at risk of killing himself if extradited to the U.S.
Suffering from Asperger syndrome and severe depression, Love would face solitary confinement and a jail sentence that could amount up to 99 years in case of extradition, his defense team argued.
The court said there was no reason Love could not be tried in the U.K. and his extradition might cause serious damage to his health.
Love, who has British and Finnish nationalities, is suspected of hacking into various U.S. agencies, including the FBI, the U.S. Central Bank and the U.S. .
He is alleged to have stolen data from the agencies through hacking in 2012 and 2013.
“This is not just for myself. I hope this sets a precedent for the future for anyone in the same position that they will be tried here,” Love said shortly after the decision.
“We are hopeful that other people will be able to rely on this.”
Love was initially arrested for the alleged offenses in 2014 and then 2015 with an official extradition warrant from the U.S. authorities.
