A senior official at an Israeli cybersecurity firm was arrested in Las Vegas on suspicion of luring a mentally ill child online for sex.
Tom Artiom Alexandrovich, 38, faces felony charges after he allegedly lured a child with a computer for a sex act.
He was arrested last week by Las Vegas police and other authorities in Nevada, whilst at a conference he was attending on behalf of the cyber directorate.
The Israel National Cyber Directorate stated that he had returned to Israel following “questioning,” but avoided mentioning the fact he was arrested.
Eight men, including Alexandrovich, were targeted due to suspicions that they were part of an online paedophile sex ring.
Las Vegas police released a statement stating that they carried out a “multi-agency operation targeting child sex predators [which] led to the arrest of eight individuals over the past two weeks.”
Alexandrovich is a senior official in the Israel National Cyber Directorate, a government organisation directly under the Prime Minister’s office.
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The Israel National Cyber Directorate said in response to the allegations: “The employee informed the Directorate that during his trip to the United States he was questioned by the U.S. authorities on matters not related to work matters, and returned to Israel on the scheduled date of return.”
The directorate claim that they do not have sufficient details on the arrest and that “at this stage, in a joint decision, the employee went on leave to deal with the matter until things will become clear.”
Contradictions from Israeli sources
The Israeli news website “Ynet” has however contradicted the directorate’s statement, claiming that Las Vegas police documents clearly indicate that Alexandrovich – the head of the cyber directorate’s technological defence division – was arrested in the U.S.
The report stated that the Israeli official was released on $10,000 bail after he had appeared in front of a judge.
“The documents indicate that Alexandrovich is suspected of seducing a mentally ill child using computer technology to have sex,” Ynet said.
Ynet also stated that “Israeli officials downplayed the incident, saying it carried ‘no political implications’ and was resolved quickly.”
The Israel National Cyber Directorate has reiterated that it “was not involved in any matter related to the bail.”
After Alexandrovich’s arrest became public, his Linkedin profile was deleted. His profile clearly showed that he is the Executive Director of the Israel Cyber Directorate
Alexandrovich was in Las Vegas to attend the Black Hat Briefings, an annual conference for cybersecurity professionals. He posted a photo of himself at the conference on his LinkedIn before the account was deleted.
Netanyahu’s office deny arrest
Israel Police refused to comment on Alexandrovich’s arrest, which coincidentally came one month after another senior Israeli official was accused of inappropriate behaviour.
Israel’s ambassador to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Yossi Shelley, was recalled to Israel after Emirati officials had complained of his inappropriate conduct regarding prostitutes.
Shelley, who was the director general of Prime Minister Netanyahu’s office, was considered as close to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Following Alexandrovich’s arrest, further denial persisted even by Netanyahu’s office, as they issued a statement denying that he was even arrested in the first place.
“A state employee who traveled to the U.S. for professional matters was questioned by American authorities during his stay,” the Prime Minister’s office said. “The employee, who does not hold a diplomatic visa, was not arrested and returned to Israel as scheduled.”
