A Paris court has decided to extradite a Russian basketball player detained in France in connection with a hacker attack case to the United States.

A Paris court has ruled to extradite Russian basketball player Daniil Kasatkin, detained in France, to the United States. In the States, he faces up to 25 years in prison on charges of computer fraud. A RIA Novosti correspondent reports this from the courtroom.

The chairman of the court said that the decision satisfies the extradition request of the American authorities. At the same time, the final decision on the extradition of Kasatkin must be approved by the Prime Minister and the Minister of Justice of France - now the administrative procedure begins.

The Russian athlete was detained on June 21 at the Paris airport, where he arrived with his fiancee. On July 8, the court sent him into custody. American authorities suspect Kasatkin of involvement in a hacker network that, between 2020 and 2022, used ransomware to carry out cyberattacks on approximately 900 companies, including two US federal agencies.

The basketball player himself denied his guilt. His lawyer argued that Kasatkin could have been deceived - he purchased a used laptop that could have been hacked. The defender stated:

“He doesn’t understand computers at all and can’t even install the application. He didn’t touch anything on the computer: either it was hacked, or a hacker sold him the computer so he could operate under someone else’s name.”

Kasatkin played for the MBA-MAI club, which plays in the VTB United League. In early July, the team announced the basketball player's departure without providing reasons.