The Democratic National Committee, Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the chairman of Hillary Clinton’s campaign have all been hacked this year. | Getty Russian hacker arrested in Prague had no ties to digital assault on U.S. election

PRAGUE — Czech Republic officials have arrested a Russian citizen suspected of hacking targets in the United States.

But two U.S. law enforcement officials told POLITICO that those targets did not include U.S. political institutions, which have been under siege from alleged Russian hackers in recent months.


The arrest, announced Tuesday, was the result of collaboration with the FBI and was based on a so-called Interpol red notice. It came just 12 hours after Czech police received information about the suspect, police said.

The suspect was arrested at a hotel in central Prague and the alleged hacker didn’t resist, Czech police said. Authorities told various news outlets that the suspect was arrested on Oct. 5 but the announcement was delayed for "tactical" reasons.

The arrest drew attention in the U.S. given the ongoing hacks of major U.S. political institutions, such as the Democratic National Committee, which the Obama administration believes Moscow officials are orchestrating.

But two U.S. law enforcement officials told POLITICO that investigators see no connection between the man arrested and these digital intrusions, which have also hit top government and campaign personnel.

“The individual was arrested for criminal activity unrelated to any U.S. political activity,” said one official, who asked not to be named.

Instead, the arrested hacker may be linked to a massive 2012 data breach at the professional networking site LinkedIn.

ABC News reported that the man was a suspect in a “major hack of LinkedIn” and that the Obama administration was seeking to extradite him to the United States.

In a statement, LinkedIn suggested the arrestee may have ties to the 2012 hack, which involved the theft of nearly 6.5 million user credentials.

“Following the 2012 breach of LinkedIn member information, we have remained actively involved with the FBI’s case to pursue those responsible,” a LinkedIn spokesperson said in a statement. “We are thankful for the hard work and dedication of the FBI in its efforts to locate and capture the parties believed to be responsible for this criminal activity.”

U.S. officials declined to immediately name the person arrested or provide details on the charges against him.

The FBI said in a statement that the arrest shows the focus U.S. and international authorities are putting on cyber crime.

"As cyber crime can originate anywhere in the world, international cooperation is crucial to successfully defeat cyber adversaries," the FBI said. "This arrest, pursuant to an INTERPOL Red Notice, highlights the collaboration that exists between U.S. law enforcement and our international partners."

Czech police said the suspect was traveling in the Czech Republic with his girlfriend and had a luxury car. Upon arrest, the man collapsed and was hospitalized, officials said. Extradition proceedings in Czech courts could see the suspect turned over to face possible charges in the United States.

Josh Gerstein and Eric Geller contributed to this report.