Police Arrest Football Referee Email Hack Suspect

A Football League referee has been arrested by Greater Manchester Police on suspicion of hacking into a colleague’s email account.

Dean Mohareb, 29, was arrested on Sunday over alleged offences under the Computer Misuse Act and equipment was seized by police from his home.

Mohareb is currently the Football Association’s national referee development manager and was due to officiate last night’s Championship match between Barnsley and Peterborough United, but withdrew in light of his arrest over the alleged email hack.

Referee email hacker

“On Sunday 30 September 2012, police seized a number of electrical items as part of an investigation into computer hacking and the dissemination of private information,” said a police spokesperson. “A 29 year-old man was arrested on suspicion of unauthorised access to computer material/data, under section 1 of the misuse of computers act 1990.

The BBC has suggested that the arrest is linked to a police investigation into the hacking of personal and work emails belonging to Jamie Frampton, who is the FA’s former National Referee Manager for Education and Training.

Frampton was an employee at the FA for ten years before she was suspended and later dismissed from her position after confidential information was leaked to the press.

Greater Manchester Police added that Mohareb has been bailed until 26 November.

Last December, the Russian organising committee for the 2018 FIFA World Cup denied that it had hacked the email accounts of England’s bid to host the tournament as well as the US bid for the 2022 World Cup.

Members of England’s bid team were questioned by the FBI into allegations of corruption during the World Cup bidding process last December and the FIFA presidential election in June.

Other victims of email hacking include Cambridge University and John Darwin, who was found guilty of fraud and money laundering in 2008 after faking his own death to collect life insurance payments.

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