UK hacker extradition appeal reaches law Lords

McKinnon says he was looking for UFOs

The fate of UK hacker Gary McKinnon will be considered next week when he appears before the House of Lords on Monday (16 June).

In a case going back to 2002, McKinnon is appealing against his extradition to the US under hacking charges.

McKinnon told Computing he is fighting the extradition, despite claiming that he would have voluntarily presented himself to a US court were it not for the high-pressure tactics used by the Americans.

He claimed that US authorities verbally offered him a plea bargain with the minimum sentence of four years, but that they refused to confirm it in writing and have now said they want to prosecute him to the maximum level. McKinnon said one US prosecutor said the US wants to see him “fry”.

Former home secretary John Reid signed the extradition order on McKinnon, who has not denied hacking into US computer systems, including some of those mentioned in the American indictment. But he claims he was never a threat to security as he broke into Nasa and US defence computers to look for evidence of the existence of UFOs.

McKinnon said the legal basis for his appeal was that the extradition treaty under which he is to be sent to the US has not been ratified by the American government.
His defence team has two hours to present his case to five law Lords. A decision is expected within three weeks of the hearing.