Iran-linked hacking suspect to be extradited to US

An Iran-linked hacking suspect will be extradited from Montenegro to the United States, Justice Minister Bojan Bozovic told local media Tuesday.

The 39-year-old Iranian-Turkish national was arrested in late June over what police called massive hacking attacks on US infrastructure, including 150 universities since 2013.

Bozovic told the Montenegrin news outlet Vijesti that Podgorica's High Court had decided to extradite the suspect to the United States. He said the justice ministry had informed the US Department of Justice and that further procedures would be carried out with relevant police services.

Police arrested the man in the coastal town of Kotor as part of a joint operation with the US Federal Bureau of Investigation on charges of cyber and organised crime, fraud, hacking and identity theft. Authorities previously estimated that damage from the alleged crimes could exceed $3.4 billion.

Police said earlier that stolen data and compromised university accounts were allegedly used for the benefit of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and other Iranian beneficiaries, including universities in Iran.