WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th March, 2020) The upcoming trial of Russian national Yevgeniy Nikulin, accused of computer hacking by US authorities, has a good chance of being postponed due to the coronavirus outbreak, Nikulin's lawyer Arkady Bukh told Sputnik on Friday.
"Court hearing with trial is scheduled for Monday, March 9. However, there is a good possibility that it may be adjourned or even canceled for some period of time because of coronavirus," Bukh said.
In October 2016, Nikulin was arrested in the Czech Republic and extradited to the United States on charges of computer hacking.
The trial was supposed to take place in San Francisco. Bukh reminded that local authorities declared the state of emergency in the city.
"The final possibility of the cancellation is high," the lawyer said, adding that the defense got a notification from local prison authorities about working on "lockdown schedule."
Bukh did not rule out that the process will start on time but can be adjourned later. He expressed anticipation that in normal situations the trial may last two to three weeks.
The defense insists that Nikulin cannot defend himself because of mental condition.
The US authorities have accused Nikulin of hacking into computers belonging to LinkedIn, Dropbox and Formspring online services. Nikulin has pleaded not guilty to the charges laid against him.
The Russian authorities, who charged Nikulin with internet fraud in 2009, requested his extradition on the same day as the United States, but the Czech Republic's Justice Ministry granted the US request.
