US deports Russian hacker: report

Russian hacker Alexei Burkov was reportedly detained at a Moscow airport on Tuesday after he was deported by the United States.

Russia’s Interior Ministry reportedly informed TASS news agency of the news, detailing that Russian police detained Burkov at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport, Reuters reported.

Burkov was sentenced to nine years in jail in the U.S. after he was accused of facilitating card fraud, hacking and other crimes.

According to the news outlet, the U.S. Embassy in Moscow did not provide a comment on Burkov being deported.

The Hill has reached out to the embassy for comment.

Because the United States and Russia do not have an extradition treaty, prisoner returns are considered rare.

Burkov was first arrested in 2015 in Israel and later extradited to the U.S. in 2019. He faced trial in 2020 and pleaded guilty to charges including computer intrusion, money laundering, fraud and identity theft, according to Reuters.

Interior Ministry spokesperson Irina Volk told TASS that Burkov has been charged in absentia by Russia.

The Department of Justice said that Burkov’s crimes included selling U.S. citizens’ credit card data and setting up a forum where members could advertise criminal services and stolen goods, Reuters reported.