The Associated Press


LONDON – Scotland Yard's cybercrime unit on Wednesday arrested a teenager it accuses of working as the spokesman for the Lulz Security hacking collective, the force said in a statement.

Scotland Yard said its Central e-Crime Unit arrested a 19-year-old at an address in Scotland's remote Shetland Islands. His name wasn't released, but the force said he used the online nickname "Topiary."

LulzSec, an offshoot of the amorphous hacking collective known as Anonymous, has claimed responsibility for a series of hacking attacks on both sides of the Atlantic. In interviews with media organizations including The Associated Press, Topiary described himself as one of LulzSec's six members.

Topiary's once-plentiful Twitter feed was practically wiped clean Wednesday. The only remaining post, from nearly a week ago, read: "You cannot arrest an idea."

Scotland Yard also said it was searching a residential address in Lincolnshire, in central England, and interviewing a 17-year-old under caution in connection with the investigation. The second teen has not been arrested.