Alleged hacker still being questioned

PEOPLE in Shetland appear to be relaxed about reports that a high profile hacker has been arrested in the isles by a specialist crime unit from the Metropolitan Police and taken to London for interrogation.

Details about the circumstances of the arrest were extremely sketchy on Thursday, but there was a general feeling that the arrest had taken place in Scalloway.

This however has not been confirmed officially, and no-one in Scalloway had any information about an arrest in the village.

A spokesman for the Met would only confirm that a18-year old man had been arrested in Shetland on Wednesday 27 July 2011.

The teenager is still being questioned and officers are likely to apply to extend the period that they can hold him without charge for a further 12 hours.

On Thursday, most local people were not surprised that such arrest had taken place in Shetland.

One Scalloway resident said: “I think this is a sign of our times and something we have to learn to live with.

“It is pretty irrelevant that this has apparently happened in Scalloway. It will happen wherever the people who are motivated to do this happen to live. I don’t think it is specific to Shetland or to Scalloway.

Another islander said: “Shetland is like anywhere else in the world. It could happen in Shetland, it could happen in New York or anywhere else; it just shows that we are connected to the world.”

But a local woman said: “I am a bit shocked and stunned. It is pretty unusual for something like this to happen in Shetland.”