Now Hacker Must ‘Face the Music’ in California : Crime: After pleading guilty to fraud in North Carolina, much more serious charges may await Kevin Mitnick in L.A.

Resolution of a North Carolina case against famed computer hacker Kevin Mitnick clears the way for him to be brought back to California, where he will face substantially more serious charges, federal authorities said.

Mitnick, the former North Hills man who was the nation’s most-wanted cyber crook before his capture in February, agreed to plead guilty Friday to one count of cellular phone fraud in Raleigh, N.C.

That plea agreement, which could bring a sentence of less than a year in prison, is just a prelude to the bulk of the government’s case against Mitnick, according to a federal prosecutor.

“What happened there is they were disposing of the limited conduct he was charged with in North Carolina in the three weeks he was there,” said Assistant U. S. Atty. David Schindler.

“Now Kevin is going to come and face the music in L. A., where, of course, the significant case has always been.”

Schindler declined to say what specific charges Mitnick could face in Los Angeles, other than to say they would involve conduct “substantially more serious” than cellular phone fraud.

What has been made public so far are claims by the government and private industry that Mitnick broke into a number of computer systems and copied software valued at millions of dollars. He also is alleged to have obtained 20,000 credit card numbers.

Mitnick, who went by the code name Condor, for more than two years led the FBI on a cross-country flight that made him a romantic figure in the renegade world of computer hackers. “Free Mitnick” T-shirts appeared at hacker conventions, and the Internet buzzed with alleged sightings.

He was eventually captured in North Carolina by a team of government agents and sophisticated private-industry techies, using tools that homed in on the signal emitted by the cellular phone he was using.

Mitnick was charged with 23 counts of cellular phone fraud, including allegations that he possessed equipment used to clone cell phones, of possessing 15 or more stolen cellular phone numbers and of using cloned phones.

Mitnick’s attorney, John Yzurdiaga, said his client has agreed to plead guilty to the single count of possessing stolen numbers.

Schindler said the North Carolina case will now be transferred to Los Angeles for sentencing.

Discussions about a possible plea-bargain of the case pending in Los Angeles have been under way privately with Yzurdiaga, authorities confirmed.

“It’s certainly possible [Mitnick] may reach a plea-bargain in California, if he accepts responsibility and acknowledges his conduct,” Schindler said.

“If not, we have been clear throughout--we will indict him. We’re ready to go.”

Mitnick, 31, began hacking as an awkward, overweight teen-ager, breaking into the records of the Los Angeles Unified School District. He earned a reputation as a phone prankster or “phone phreak,” for his ability to manipulate the Pacific Bell system.

His exploits were so feared that he more than once has been denied access to a phone in jail out of fear that he could harass those who prosecuted him. After spending a year in prison on a variety of hacking charges, Mitnick was placed on probation and entered a counseling program designed to cure his obsession with hacking.

He fled Southern California in late 1992 before finishing treatment--just ahead of agents investigating still other hacking-related allegations.

Despite his frequent run-ins with the law, he has always had a large contingent of supporters who argue that he is more mischievous than dangerous. They contend he has never made money off his hacking, unlike others, and did it exclusively for the thrill.

The credit card numbers, for instance, presumably would have been extremely valuable to organized crime. So far, however, there is no indication that he actually tried to sell or use those numbers.

When Mitnick was captured in Raleigh, he was living in a small apartment in a singles complex and eating frugally. Job applications were found in the apartment, authorities said.

Asked whether the accusations awaiting him in Los Angeles involve any profit-making schemes, Schindler replied that it’s “hard to know. Maybe, maybe not.”

He said only that the conduct is “far more serious” than anything Mitnick is accused of doing in North Carolina. Schindler also said it involves activity that has not yet come to light.

Prior to his capture, investigators say, Mitnick spent time in Denver and outside Seattle, where he was nearly captured months before his arrest in North Carolina. Agents busting into his apartment there found the computer station he was forced to abandon in his haste to flee.

Investigators in both areas have been preparing evidence against him.

He also could face charges in San Francisco. “The FBI has done a bang-up job,” Schindler said.

The next step is to bring him to California.

“He will come to Los Angeles immediately now,” Schindler said. “Not for a moment does Kevin believe his guilty plea in North Carolina addresses the gravity of his conduct.”

Schindler also said he believes any resolution of the case in Los Angeles will result in stiffer punishment than any hacker has yet received.

So far, Kevin Poulsen, another San Fernando Valley man, has spent the most time in prison on computer hacking charges. He has been behind bars more than four years on a variety of charges, including the most famous exploit of all, rigging radio station contests.

Poulsen also is awaiting trial in the Bay Area on charges of possessing a classified Defense Department document.