PS3 Hacker Didn’t Flee, Did Hand Over Hard Drives, Says Lawyer

The attorney for George Hotz, the hacker being sued by Sony for jailbreaking the PlayStation 3, denies that Hotz fled to South America to avoid a court order and says he has delivered his impounded hard drives as required to a neutral party. Sony, in a court filing, had alleged the drives were delivered with parts missing, and Hotz left the country to avoid providing them.

Stewart Kellar, Hotz’s attorney, said Sony’s claim that the drives were missing “integral components”, concerned “stock controller cards, not the hard drives themselves,” Kellar told IGN. “The neutral [party]subsequently had to explain to SCEA the form and function of hard drive controller cards. Those controller cards have since been provided to the neutral so the point is moot.”

Kellar, while he didn’t say Hotz was not in South America, shot down allegations that Hotz used donation money, mostly grass-roots donations raised over the internet, to travel there, and disputed its characterisation as Hotz “fleeing” from justice, which in this case is a civil lawsuit, not criminal charges.

“As for any question as to whether Mr. Hotz has used donation money to take a trip to South America, that’s pretty silly. Litigating against a massive company like Sony, who is represented by five attorneys, is very costly for a 21-year-old,” Kellar told IGN. “The donation money George has received is being used exclusively for his legal defence. If there are any funds left after the lawsuit, George is planning to donate the money to the [Electronic Frontier Foundation] .”

More Twists in PS3 Hacker Case [IGN]

Republished from Kotaku