Blaster suspect 'surprised' at arrest

[InfoSec News <isn () c4i org>]

http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2003/0903blastsuspect.html

By Martyn Williams
IDG News Service
09/03/03

A Minnesota teenager who was arrested last week and charged with 
releasing the W32.Blaster-B Internet worm has spoken of his surprise 
at being arrested and also said the media has mischaracterized him as 
a loner and reckless. 

Jeffrey Lee Parson, 18, made the statements during his first media 
interview since his arrest last Friday. The interview was given 
off-camera to a producer from U.S. television network NBC's "Today" 
show and a transcript of the interview was posted on the Web site of 
MSNBC. 

Parson revealed he had been questioned by authorities at least four 
times over a period of at least a week and said he had been 
cooperating with the investigation before being charged. 

"When I was first approached by authorities, I never thought I was a 
suspect in a crime," he said, according to the transcript. Of being 
charged, he said: "I was very surprised. To me it came completely out 
of the blue that I was going to be arrested and charged with this 
offense." 

Parson's lack of understanding of the direction the investigation was 
taking before he was charged appears to have continued, at least to 
the moment of the interview. He twice said he does not currently have 
a lawyer and he also admitted to not fully understanding the charges 
against him, having a copy of the complaint or having the complaint 
properly explained to him, according to the transcript. 

The W32.Blaster-B worm is a variant of the W32.Blaster-A worm which 
infected millions of PCs last month. Blaster-B was released three days 
after the original worm, according to antivirus company Sophos PLC, 
and infected far fewer machines than the original, . 

Parson declined to explain what part, if any, he played in the writing 
or release of the worm, citing his need to consult a lawyer before 
going into details. He did say that he believes the government is 
trying to make an example of him and that he is "not the one they need 
to get," according to the transcript. 

He also said some characterizations of him in the media have been 
false. He said he is not a loner, not a misfit, not embarrassed about 
his weight, doesn't smoke, drink or do drugs and is not reckless. In 
getting a picture of him, he said the media have talked to the wrong 
people - people who are not as close to him as they claimed to be. 

Parson was arrested by federal law enforcement the morning of Aug. 29 
and appeared in court in St. Paul, Minnesota in the afternoon of the 
same day. At the hearing Parson was released on a $25,000 personal 
recognizance bond and instructed to appear before a magistrate in 
Seattle on Sept. 17. 



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