On January 31 Morgunbladid published a story linking the so-called “spy computer” found in Althingi, Iceland’s Parliament, to a journalist at DV, a Reykjavík newspaper. The story stated that the journalist, Ingi Freyr Vilhjálmsson, was a suspect in the police investigation. Consequently police stated that this was false and Morgunbladid apologized to Vilhjálmsson.
The front page story in Morgunbladid, January 31, stating there is a link between DV and Wikileaks
According to Morgunbladid’s sources, the Althingi ‘spy computer’ was of the same make as a computer confiscated by the police in February last year in connection with the arrest of a 17-year-old boy.
The boy was suspected of having stolen data from the computer of a lawyer representing well-known individuals, such as businessman Karl Wernesson and footballer Eidur Smári Gudjohnsen (see that story here), and selling them to a journalist at the tabloid newspaper DV.
According to Morgunbladid, the boy is now working for Wikileaks in London. He is said to have been uncooperative with the police, refusing to hand over a code necessary for unlocking the computer found at Althingi.
On Friday, February 11 Morgunbladid issued a second apology to Vilhjálmsson, saying that was false that journalist Vilhjálmsson had paid the boy to break into the computer.
As a part of a settlement in the case Morgunbladid took out a full page ad in three newspapers, DV, Fréttabladid and Fréttatíminn on Friday. The ad carries the paper’s apology over the front page story.
The full page apology in Fréttabladid February 11. Also published in DV and Fréttatíminn.
The front page story story was written by Agnes Bragadóttir, an investigative reporter at Morgunbladid for many years. Morgunbladid is edited by Haraldur Johannessen, previously editor of Vidskiptabladid, and David Oddsson, Prime Minister of Iceland 1991-2004 and Governor of the Central Bank of Iceland 2005-2009.
