Topics: US News, Bella Thorne, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film and TV, Crime, True crime, Technology, Cryptocurrency
A man who hacked Bella Thorne's phone and Snapchat has begged a US judge not to put him behind bars.
British hacker Joseph O’Connor - who was behind cyber-attacks on several celebrities - also admitted to conspiring to steal thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency.
While he awaits sentencing, the 24-year-old has written to the judge and pleaded to be spared jail as he now ‘grasps’ the seriousness of his offences.
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The tech fiend has also admitted to using his computer skills to harass a 16-year-old girl – placing hoax calls to the local police department under her name.
He was arrested in southern Spain on charges related to the hacking of the Twitter accounts of over 130 people – including Kayne West, Joe Biden and Elon Musk.
In the letter to Judge Jed Rakoff, the hacker explained that online gaming had made him ‘a self-indulgent, impulsive idiot’ and ‘a lonely, reclusive life for many years’.
“I ate myself fat with unhealthy processed unhealthy foods. I developed a back injury, all due to sitting in a chair for 18 hours a day. I never exercised,” he added. “My eyes could not tolerate the sunshine if I opened the blinds.”
He added that spending seven weeks in jail in New York has been a 'hellhole' and that he now wants to 'lead a productive life'.
Prosecutors claim that he first gained access to Thorne’s phone and Snapchat account back in 2019, with the hacker sharing various nude photos he found with his ‘associates’.
He also allegedly used the social media app to promote his accounts, telling users that he would share the Disney star’s images if 5,000 people followed him.
Prosecutors then say one of O'Connor's associates messaged Thorne, instructing her to put out a message promoting O'Connor as well as other social media accounts. She was told if she didn't comply, the pics would be released and ‘the entire internet [will be] looking at your personal s***’.
In response, Thorne posted the images herself, telling the associate: “F*** u and the power u think you have over me… the fbi will be at your house shortly.”
O'Connor was later arrested after four months of surveillance on the flat, with him later spending time in a Malaga prison.
In April, he was extradited to the US, where he pleaded guilty to seven charges involving cybercrime and conspiring with others to steal nearly $800,000 of cryptocurrency from a tech company in New York.
Prosecutors are seeking seven years of jail time at his sentencing on Friday (23 June).
Thorne has previously thanked the FBI on social media, writing: “I want to thank the FBI for searching tirelessly for the person who made my life and others a living hell.”
