Local News in Brief : Accused Hacker Faces Arraignment Tuesday
Suspected computer hacker Kevin D. Mitnick will plead innocent to charges that he illegally accessed secret computer data of Digital Equipment Corp. and Leeds University in England, his lawyer said Tuesday.
Mitnick, 25, of Panorama City appeared before U.S. Magistrate Robert Stone and was assigned to U.S. District Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer for trial. Mitnick is scheduled to enter a plea before Pfaelzer on Tuesday.
His lawyer, Alan Rubin, said Mitnick would plead innocent to the three-count indictment charging him with computer fraud and interstate transportation of stolen property.
Mitnick is being held without bail at the request of prosecutors, who argued that he posed a danger because he is able to access computers through pay telephone lines. His calls from prison are limited to several approved numbers.
The indictment charges Mitnick with gaining illegal access to Digital’s computer system in November and obtaining a copy of a secret program designed to protect its software. He is charged with transporting the program to Los Angeles over phone lines from Massachusetts.
He also allegedly accessed the Leeds University computer Dec. 8 and used MCI Telecommunications Corp.’s long-distance lines for free.
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