Gary McKinnon loses final appeal

Gary McKinnon now faces extradition to the US

Nasa hacker Gary McKinnon has lost his latest bid to be tried in the UK, and is now almost certain to face trial in the US.

Despite widespread support for his case from London mayor Boris Johnson, the Daily Mail and several MPs, McKinnon was told by the High Court that he must be extradited to the US.

According to reports, Lord Justice Stanley Burnton and Mr Justice Wilkie said that extradition was "a lawful and proportionate response to his offending".

The 43-year old from London has admitted hacking into the computer systems of the Pentagon and Nasa in 2001 and 2002, claiming that he was looking for evidence of extraterrestrial life.

McKinnon's defence team has argued that the US authorities are likely to make an example of McKinnon and punish him with the maximum possible sentence, potentially 60 years in a maximum security prison.

Glasgow born McKinnon has appealed to the home secretary, the European Court of Human Rights and the Crown Prosecution Service to be tried in the UK, and this judicial review in the High Court could be his last chance.

Supporters of McKinnon have argued that the Asperger's sufferer would be unable to cope with life in a maximum security prison. Earlier this month the Conservative Party got behind McKinnon, using his case to question current extradition laws.