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Millionaire accused of being part of hacker gang |
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Sunday, 05 February 2006 |
A high-profile London society millionaire is among a group of defendants accused of being part of a phone-tapping and computer hacking scheme that gathered confidential information on wealthy people and businesses.
Matthew Mellon, heir to a £6.6bn banking and oil fortune and former husband of Tamara Mellon, who runs Jimmy Choo shoes, is among the accused. He has been charged with conspiracy to cause unauthorised modification of computer material, according to the Sunday Times.
The case is the result of an investigation by the Metropolitan Police into a private detective agency run by former policemen, following a tip-off from BT that the agency was bugging phone calls.
The gang is also accused of hacking NHS computers to access confidential medical files to blackmail people, and spying on police between July and September 2004.
The 18 defendants are due to appear at Bow Street. |