November 30, 2010, 1:27 PM — Cables from the US Department of State that were recently made available on WikiLeaks have revealed how Gordon Brown pleaded with the US to stop the extradition NASA hacker Gary McKinnon.
The cable, which is thought to from Louis Susman, the US ambassador in the UK, to US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, details how Brown, who was then Prime Minister, tried to hammer out a deal with the US by highlighting the concerns that McKinnon would commit suicide if imprisoned in the US.
According to The Guardian, which has been working with Wikileaks regarding the cables, Susman said in the cable: "PM Brown, in a one-on-one meeting with the ambassador, proposed a deal: that McKinnon plead guilty, make a statement of contrition, but serve any sentence of incarceration in the UK".
"Brown cited deep public concern that McKinnon, with his medical condition, would commit suicide or suffer injury if imprisoned in a US facility."
Susman also said in the cable that despite the "public criticism of the US-UK extradition treaty" caused by the case, "the US administration said it still wanted McKinnon to stand trial in the States".
McKinnon, is accused of breaking into US military computers, including those belonging to NASA, in a bid to prove the US government had knowledge of UFOs in 2001.
The US claims McKinnon's hacking activities caused $700,000 (£433,000) worth of damage. He's also accused of stealing 950 passwords, deleting files at a naval base in New Jersey and rendering the military computer networks used following September 11 useless.
The cable also details an attempt by new prime minister, David Cameron, to raise the issue with US officials.
"Cameron said he had raised the extradition with the ambassador in an earlier conversation because the case was a matter of concern for many in the British public," Susman said in the cables.
"British people generally feel McKinnon is guilty 'but they are sympathetic', Cameron said."
A hearing into the demands of the extradition is expected to be opened by Parliament's home affairs committee today.
