Russia hits out at 'kidnapping' of MP's son by US secret service

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jul/08/russia-mps-son-seleznev-arrest-us-secret-service

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Russian authorities have reacted with anger over the "kidnapping" of the son of a Russian MP, apparently detained by US agents in the Maldives, on suspicion of hacking computer systems in order to steal the credit card details of thousands of Americans.

The US department of homeland security announced on Monday that the secret service had arrested Roman Seleznev on suspicion of hacking activities carried out between 2009 and 2011. He is the son of Valery Seleznev, an MP from the ultra-nationalist Liberal Democratic arty, whose leader has frequently made anti-American outbursts.

Russia's foreign ministry said that Seleznev was seized by US officials as he attempted to board a plane in the Maldives, and was instead forcefully transferred to another plane, from where he was flown to the US Pacific island of Guam.

Initially, Valery Seleznev said he was certain that the man arrested could not be his relative, as his son did not have any knowledge of computers and did not even have a US visa. Later, it became apparent that the arrest did not take place on US soil, and Russian agencies reported that the MP confirmed it was indeed his son involved. He said he had not been able to speak to his son, but maintained that the allegations were false.

"This is a monstrous lie and a provocative act," he said.

The Russian foreign ministry condemned the arrest as "the latest unfriendly move from Washington", and criticised the Maldives for ignoring a bilateral treaty and allowing a Russian citizen to be extradited with no due procedure.

In a statement, the ministry said: "This is not the first time the US side, ignoring a bilateral treaty … on mutual assistance in criminal matters, has gone ahead with what amounts to the kidnapping of a Russian citizen."

The foreign ministry also compared the arrest to that of Viktor Bout, considered to be one of the world's most prominent arms dealers but described by Moscow as an ordinary businessman caught in the crosshairs of unfair US justice. Bout, who is believed to have ties to Russian intelligence, was caught during a sting in Thailand in 2008 offering to sell weapons to people he thought were Colombian paramilitaries. He was extradited to the US in 2010, prompting Russian fury, and sentenced to 25 years in jail in 2012.

US authorities gave no details of the detention of Seleznev, except to say that the suspected hacker was arrested in Guam, where he faced a court on Monday. Seleznev, who was indicted in Washington state in March 2011 on charges that include bank fraud and identity theft, could face decades in prison if found guilty on all counts. He is accused of stealing the details of tens of thousands of credit card users from a number of restaurants and small businesses in the US and trading the information online.