Editor charged in hacking indictment suspended with pay

Matthew Keys, 26, pictured, was indicted on Thursday by a federal grand jury in Sacramento, California, on three criminal counts. The alleged events occurred before he joined Reuters in January 2012 as deputy social media editor based in New York, the indictment indicated.

Thomson Reuters spokesman David Girardin confirmed Keys’ suspension  but declined further comment. Reuters reported that Keys did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Keys exchanged tweets with some well-wishers on Twitter on Friday, telling one of them: “I’m okay”.

The indictment alleges Keys gave hackers access to Tribune Company computer systems in December 2010. A story on Tribune’s Los Angeles Times website was altered by one of those hackers, it said.

He is due to be arraigned on 12 April in Sacramento, according to the court docket. ■