British police have arrested a 19-year-old man linked to both Anonymous and LulzSec.
Known as “Topiary,” the hacktivist was apprehended at a residential address in the Shetland Islands. A second residential address in Lincolnshire is also being searched, while A 17-year-old male is being interviewed under caution in connection with the inquiry. He has not (yet) been arrested.
Topiary was often presented as a de-facto spokesperson for both groups.
During a video interview earlier this year, Topiary debated a representative of the controversial Westboro Baptist Church, while simultaneously downing the Church’s website.
As noted above, the 19-year-old has been tied to a number of prominent hacks by Lulz and Anon, including the high-profile campaign against HBGary.
Topiary’s arrest comes just a week after various law enforcement agencies launched an international crackdown against members of Anonymous and LulzSecurity for allegedly participating in mass DDoS attacks as well as hack and extract ops.
U.S. prosecutors have already charged 14 people with conspiracy and intentional damage over their alleged participation in a DDoS attack against Paypal from December 6-10, 2010. An additional two individuals from New Mexico and Florida netted in the recent raids also stand accused of improper access to computer files.
The federal operation against both groups kicked off a few weeks after Anonymous activists associated with the AntiSec movement hacked defense contractor Booz Allen Hamilton and IRC Federal – a government-contracted IT company.
Both hack and extract ops closely followed an extensive (and highly embarrassing) digital campaign waged against Arizona law enforcement officials.
