Update: Ferizi has been sentenced to 20 years, Reuter reports. I’ll upload DOJ’s press release when it’s available.
Original report:
AP reports that Ardit Ferizi, also known as “Th3Dir3ctorY,” is scheduled to be sentenced today. Ferizi had pleaded guilty in June to assisting the Islamic State, and is the first person convicted of both hacking and terrorism charges.
Ferizi hacked a private company and pulled out the names, email passwords and phone numbers of more than 1,300 people with .gov and .mil addresses. The Islamic State published the names with a threat to attack.
Prosecutors want a maximum sentence of 25 years. Defense lawyers say Ferizi meant no real harm and are asking for a six-year sentence.
This post will be updated if he is sentenced today in the Eastern District of Virginia.
Although Ferizi’s case involves terrorism as well as hacking issues and Ferizi had waived extradition from Malaysia, I imagine Lauri Love’s legal team will be watching the sentencing closely. Love is appealing a U.K. judge’s decision to extradite him to the U.S., where he has been indicted on hacking charges in the same federal court as well as two other federal courts here.