Former U.S. Air Force Member, Michael Weber, arrested for Computer Fraud Charges
Michael Weber, 22, of Alamogordo, N.M, made his initial appearance this afternoon in federal court in Albuquerque, N.M., on a criminal complaint charging him with a computer fraud offense. Weber remains in federal custody pending a preliminary hearing and a detention hearing, both of which are scheduled for tomorrow.
Photo/Robinraj Premchand
FBI agents arrested Weber early this morning at a residence in Alamogordo. According to the criminal complaint, Weber allegedly placed a program, information, code, or command known as a “spam bot” onto a government-issued cellular phone assigned to Weber’s supervisor on Jan. 16, 2018. The “spam bot” allegedly caused the cellular phone to receive a long string of messages allegedly intended to cause damage to the cellular phone. At the time he allegedly committed the offense, Weber was an Airman with the U.S. Air Force and was stationed at Cannon Air Force Base, N.M.
The statutory penalty for a conviction on the computer fraud offense is a maximum of ten years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Charges in criminal complaints are merely accusations and defendants are presumed innocent unless found guilty in a court of law.
This case was investigated by the Albuquerque office of the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Sean J. Sullivan.
