Russian man faces US trial in lucrative hacking scheme

Prosecutors describe Roman Seleznev, the son of a Russian lawmaker, as a master hacker who orchestrated an international scheme that resulted in about $170 million in fraudulent credit card purchases.
In a federal jury trial that begins this week, they plan to lay out evidence that they say will prove Seleznev hacked into US businesses, mostly pizza restaurants in Washington state, and stole credit card information.
They claim he made millions by selling that data on underground internet forums.
Seleznev's lawyers plan to argue that prosecutors have failed to adequately connect Seleznev with the computer hacks that hit more than 200 businesses over several years.

They have also said the US Secret Service agents who arrested Seleznev mishandled his laptop, which may have compromised some evidence.
Seleznev faces a 40-count indictment that charges him with running a hacking scheme from 2008 until his arrest in the Maldives in July 2014.

Steve Bussing, owner of Red Pepper Pizza in Duvall, northeast of Seattle, told The Associated Press on Friday that he and his wife had to spend about $10,000 installing a new computer system after they learned theirs was compromised by a hacker.
"It was a huge expense" for a small business, he said, adding that the process disrupted their business as they shut down and reinstalled a new security system to protect their customers.

Bussing, along with owners and managers from Mad Pizza, ZPizza, Grand Central Bakery, Village Pizza, and Casa Mia were included on the prosecutor's witness list and were expected to testify about the effect of the hacking on their companies.
Secret Service agents captured Seleznev as he and his girlfriend arrived at the airport on their way back to Russia.
The agents flew him by private jet to Guam, where he made his first court appearance, and then to Seattle, where he is in federal custody.
Seleznev was indicted on 29 felony charges in 2011, but a month later, Seleznev suffered a brain injury in a terrorist bombing in a cafe in Morocco.

He was in a coma for two weeks and underwent a series of operations, according to one of his previous lawyers.
He bears a sickle-shaped, horizontal scar on the side of his head that is visible when his hair is cut short. He speaks little English and participates in court hearings with the help of a Russian interpreter.
His father, Valery Seleznev, is a member of the Russian Parliament.