Irishman accused of hacking ‘Sun’ site

A second Irishman has appeared in a court in Dublin charged with hacking the UK website of The Sun.

Darren Martyn, aged 24, of Cloonebeggin, Claregalway, Co Galway, was brought before Dublin District Court on charges under the Criminal Damage Act.

Mr Martyn, who studied biopharmaceutical chemistry at NUI Galway, was arrested by appointment in Dublin yesterday and then taken to the Criminal Courts of Justice building.

He is accused of unlawfully damaging thesun.co.uk on July 18, 2011, with the offence alleged to have occurred in the Cloonbeggin area.

There was no objection to bail in his own bond of €500, with conditions that he resides at his current address in Birmingham, England, supplies gardaí with a contact number, and has no contact with witnesses.

Judge Michael Walsh heard the DPP has directed that he is to face “trial on indictment” in December.

In September, Donncha Ó Cearbhaill, aged 23, from The Ring, Birr, Co Offaly, but now living and working in Berlin, was also arrested in Dublin by arrangement.

The Trinity College Dublin graduate is charged with damaging property, data outside the State, belonging to News International, where users of thesun.co.uk were redirected to two other websites: new-times.co.uk and a webpage attributed to hacking community Lulzsec.