WASHINGTON: The US Department of Justice said on Tuesday (Jul 8) that a Chinese state-sponsored contract hacker was arrested last week in Italy at the request of Washington, but the arrested man claimed he is a victim of mistaken identity.
Xu Zewei, 33, was arrested on Jul 3, the Justice Department said, adding a nine-count indictment was unsealed on Tuesday in the Southern District of Texas alleging the involvement of that individual and a co-defendant in computer intrusions between February 2020 and June 2021.
Xu was arrested in Milan, Italy, and will face extradition proceedings, the DOJ said in a statement.
It alleged China’s ministry of state security had directed theft of COVID-19 research and the exploitation of Microsoft email software vulnerabilities.
The Chinese government has previously denied allegations of being involved. Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for China’s embassy in Washington, said on Tuesday China opposes all forms of cyber crimes, adding that “China has neither the need nor the intention to acquire vaccines through so-called theft”.
Mao Ning, a spokesperson for China’s foreign ministry, said on Thursday that China opposed “the use of so-called cyber issues to maliciously smear China” when asked about the case in a regular press briefing.
China opposes the extradition of Chinese citizens through a third country, Mao said, accusing the US of “abusing long-arm jurisdiction”.
Xu’s lawyer said on Tuesday that he is a victim of mistaken identity, that his surname is quite common in China and that his mobile phone had been stolen in 2020.
