RIGA — Police have raided the home and seized the computer of the journalist who was first to report the exploits of the cyber-whistleblower by the moniker “Neo,” raising the stakes in their battle against the Latvian hero.

Reports on Wednesday said that police searched the home of LTV journalist Ilze Nagla, whose work on the “De Facto” program helped break the story of Neo, allegedly a Latvian hacker who illegally downloaded from the State Revenue Service’s website thousands of [private_supervisor]income declarations of the country’s political and and business elite and top corporations.

Neo, who was believed to be located abroad when he started his “crusade,” then made all the information public on the Internet, instantly according him a cult following in Latvian society.

Police confiscated Nagla’s computer and other data storage devices, clearly demonstrating their preparedness to take the investigation into Neo to another level.

Media reports indicate that police may have even detained Neo. Regardless, police’s continuing efforts to obtain evidence shows their intention to bring closure to the case despite Neo’s hero-status in Latvia.

Still, the raid and computer seizure raised the ire of the journalist’s boss and colleagues.

“Of course, we’re indignant,” Mareks Gailītis, LTV’s news director, told BNS. “On the one hand, the law protects journalists as they are required to reveal their sources only by court order. On the other hand, if police turn up on someone’s house and seize the computer, the situation becomes absurd. How are journalists supposed to work if they cannot lawfully protect their information sources?”

The interior ministry defended its actions and said it would adhere to all applicable laws.

“Interior minister Linda Mūrniece will personally monitor the State Police to ensure that the investigation is carried out in strict accordance with the law in order to eliminate any doubts about restricting press freedom,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry reminded the public that the by taking the data and disseminating it the criminal code was broken and that economic crimes department is continuing a probe that it began on Feb. 11 in connection with the breaches.

Nagla, however, counters that the law protects journalists from revealing their sources, a nuance that economic crimes department chief Gatis Gudermanis acknowledged, the Delfi portal reported.

Nagla wasn’t the only one to have a computer confiscated this week. Late Tuesday night police confiscated of the servers maintained by the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science of the University of Latvia in search of Neo. [/private_supervisor] [private_subscription 1 month]income declarations of the country’s political and and business elite and top corporations.

Neo, who was believed to be located abroad when he started his “crusade,” then made all the information public on the Internet, instantly according him a cult following in Latvian society.

Police confiscated Nagla’s computer and other data storage devices, clearly demonstrating their preparedness to take the investigation into Neo to another level.

Media reports indicate that police may have even detained Neo. Regardless, police’s continuing efforts to obtain evidence shows their intention to bring closure to the case despite Neo’s hero-status in Latvia.

Still, the raid and computer seizure raised the ire of the journalist’s boss and colleagues.

“Of course, we’re indignant,” Mareks Gailītis, LTV’s news director, told BNS. “On the one hand, the law protects journalists as they are required to reveal their sources only by court order. On the other hand, if police turn up on someone’s house and seize the computer, the situation becomes absurd. How are journalists supposed to work if they cannot lawfully protect their information sources?”

The interior ministry defended its actions and said it would adhere to all applicable laws.

“Interior minister Linda Mūrniece will personally monitor the State Police to ensure that the investigation is carried out in strict accordance with the law in order to eliminate any doubts about restricting press freedom,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry reminded the public that the by taking the data and disseminating it the criminal code was broken and that economic crimes department is continuing a probe that it began on Feb. 11 in connection with the breaches.

Nagla, however, counters that the law protects journalists from revealing their sources, a nuance that economic crimes department chief Gatis Gudermanis acknowledged, the Delfi portal reported. Nagla wasn’t the only one to have a computer confiscated this week. Late Tuesday night police confiscated of the servers maintained by the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science of the University of Latvia in search of Neo.[/private_subscription 1 month] [private_subscription 4 months]income declarations of the country’s political and and business elite and top corporations.

Neo, who was believed to be located abroad when he started his “crusade,” then made all the information public on the Internet, instantly according him a cult following in Latvian society.

Police confiscated Nagla’s computer and other data storage devices, clearly demonstrating their preparedness to take the investigation into Neo to another level.

Media reports indicate that police may have even detained Neo. Regardless, police’s continuing efforts to obtain evidence shows their intention to bring closure to the case despite Neo’s hero-status in Latvia.

Still, the raid and computer seizure raised the ire of the journalist’s boss and colleagues.

“Of course, we’re indignant,” Mareks Gailītis, LTV’s news director, told BNS. “On the one hand, the law protects journalists as they are required to reveal their sources only by court order. On the other hand, if police turn up on someone’s house and seize the computer, the situation becomes absurd. How are journalists supposed to work if they cannot lawfully protect their information sources?”

The interior ministry defended its actions and said it would adhere to all applicable laws.

“Interior minister Linda Mūrniece will personally monitor the State Police to ensure that the investigation is carried out in strict accordance with the law in order to eliminate any doubts about restricting press freedom,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry reminded the public that the by taking the data and disseminating it the criminal code was broken and that economic crimes department is continuing a probe that it began on Feb. 11 in connection with the breaches.

Nagla, however, counters that the law protects journalists from revealing their sources, a nuance that economic crimes department chief Gatis Gudermanis acknowledged, the Delfi portal reported. Nagla wasn’t the only one to have a computer confiscated this week. Late Tuesday night police confiscated of the servers maintained by the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science of the University of Latvia in search of Neo.[/private_subscription 4 months] [private_subscription 1 year]income declarations of the country’s political and and business elite and top corporations.

Neo, who was believed to be located abroad when he started his “crusade,” then made all the information public on the Internet, instantly according him a cult following in Latvian society.

Police confiscated Nagla’s computer and other data storage devices, clearly demonstrating their preparedness to take the investigation into Neo to another level.

Media reports indicate that police may have even detained Neo. Regardless, police’s continuing efforts to obtain evidence shows their intention to bring closure to the case despite Neo’s hero-status in Latvia.

Still, the raid and computer seizure raised the ire of the journalist’s boss and colleagues.

“Of course, we’re indignant,” Mareks Gailītis, LTV’s news director, told BNS. “On the one hand, the law protects journalists as they are required to reveal their sources only by court order. On the other hand, if police turn up on someone’s house and seize the computer, the situation becomes absurd. How are journalists supposed to work if they cannot lawfully protect their information sources?”

The interior ministry defended its actions and said it would adhere to all applicable laws.

“Interior minister Linda Mūrniece will personally monitor the State Police to ensure that the investigation is carried out in strict accordance with the law in order to eliminate any doubts about restricting press freedom,” the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry reminded the public that the by taking the data and disseminating it the criminal code was broken and that economic crimes department is continuing a probe that it began on Feb. 11 in connection with the breaches.

Nagla, however, counters that the law protects journalists from revealing their sources, a nuance that economic crimes department chief Gatis Gudermanis acknowledged, the Delfi portal reported.

Nagla wasn’t the only one to have a computer confiscated this week. Late Tuesday night police confiscated of the servers maintained by the Institute of Mathematics and Computer Science of the University of Latvia in search of Neo.[/private_subscription 1 year]

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