Montenegrin police, working alongside the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, have arrested an Iranian national suspected of carrying out cyberattacks that caused an estimated $3.4 billion in damage to U.S. infrastructure, according to officials in Montenegro.
The suspect, a 39-year-old man holding both Iranian and Turkish citizenship, is being sought by the Southern District Court in New York. He faces charges that include conspiracy to commit computer fraud, hacking, and identity theft.
Authorities say he was taken into custody in Kotor, a coastal resort town along the Adriatic Sea. Montenegro’s police directorate confirmed the arrest on Thursday.
In an official statement, police said that “from 2013 onward, … he carried out massive hacking attacks … targeting more than 150 universities in the United States, causing damage estimated at over $3.4 billion.”
The stolen data and access to compromised university accounts were reportedly used for the benefit of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, as well as other Iranian institutions, including universities, police said.
The case is now expected to go before a High Court judge in Montenegro’s capital city of Podgorica, where extradition proceedings will take place.
The FBI had not responded to requests for comment at the time of this report.
Iran and the IRGC have a well-documented history of state-sponsored cyber operations aimed at the United States. In April, U.S. cybersecurity, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies issued a warning about a growing wave of Iranian hacking campaigns targeting critical American infrastructure.
