A French court today convicted disgraced cycling star Floyd Landis on charges related to hacking the medical lab that housed results from the doping scandal.
Landis was tried in absentia in a courtroom in Nanterre, and found guilty “for his role in hacking into the computers of a French doping lab,” according to NPR . The news agency cites several sources reporting back on the ruling, noting that it appears to suggest that while no evidence was apparent that Landis was involved, the fact that he stood to benefit seemed to be a large factor in the decision:
“Prosecutors argued that Landis and coach Arnie Baker masterminded a [2006] plot to hack into the lab’s computer system to obtain documents as part of an effort to defend the cyclist’s name… Judges said that although no evidence directly linked Messrs. Landis and Baker to the hacking of the antidoping lab, both men benefited from the illegal intrusion.”
Along with Landis, former coach and co-defendant Arnie Baker also received a 12-month suspended sentence in the case. Baker commented:
“I had nothing to do with any hacking and as far as I knew, the lab documents I received while serving as an expert consultant to the legal team for Floyd Landis were obtained legally… This case against me appears to be a deeply flawed process from start to finish, designed to protect a national French institution and cover up its apparent sloppy work and incompetence.”
Lawyer for Landis Emmanuel Daoud said he would advise his client to appeal the ruling, as allowing it to stand unchallenged would be tantamount to an admission he had a hand in the hacking.
