Ukraine keeps 'Avalanche' cybercrime suspect in custody

KIEV: Ukraine will keep one of the suspected organisers of the massive Avalanche global cybercrime network behind bars while he awaits trial, the interior ministry said Tuesday.
The 35-year-old suspect Gennadiy Kapkanov was transferred to the central Ukrainian city of Poltava where a court ruled to detain him in custody, interior ministry spokesman Artem Shevchenko told AFP.
The court hearing was held late Monday after Kapkanov was arrested on Sunday at his rented flat in Kiev.
In November 2016, police from more than 25 countries smashed the network and arrested its top bosses following a four-year operation.
Kapkanov was also detained at the time in Poltava, his home city, but the local court did not formally arrest him and he disappeared. An international arrest warrant was then issued in his name.
Globally, 39 servers were seized and more than 800,000 internet domains were seized or blocked, Europol said at the time, in what Europe's law enforcement agency called one of the biggest takedowns to date.
The massive criminal network was used to launch and manage malware attacks that infected half a million computers worldwide, Europol said. — AFP