Hungarian police said Thursday they had arrested a suspected Portuguese hacker linked to the Football Leaks whistleblower website who is accused of extortion in Portugal. French lawyers for 30-year-old Rui Pinto confirmed the arrest and said they would fight any attempt at extradition.

Without naming Pinto, Budapest police said that a man was arrested on Wednesday following a warrant "issued by the Portuguese authorities on 15 January". Portuguese police said he could be extradited within a month. "In accordance with the warrant, items in his possession believed to be connected to criminal activity were also seized," Budapest police said, adding that extradition proceedings were under way. Portuguese prosecutors said that the man was suspected of "aggravated attempted extortion".

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2019