In what prosecutors are calling a “first of its kind” case, a hacker linked to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has been extradited to the U.S. to face charges.
The Kosovo citizen, Ardit Ferizi, 20, made his first appearance in a U.S. District court in Virginia on Wednesday, according to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) press release.
Ferizi was arrested in Malaysia in October 2015 for allegedly hacking an American company to steal personally identifiable information (PII) on more than 1,300 U.S. military and government employees and provide it to ISIL.
“This case is a first of its kind and, with these charges, we seek to hold Ferizi accountable,” Assistant Attorney General John P. Carlin said in a separate Justice Department press release.
Ferizi faces a maximum penalty of 35 years in prison if convicted.
