Even fleas have fleas

Police seize Russian trio in cyber extortion ring

Police said the gang had unleashed digital attacks over the Internet on dozens of occasions.

"These were the main people behind the organisation. They were coordinating it and laundering the money," said a source at the British Embassy in Moscow.

They are accused of threatening to shut businesses down with a massive barrage of data -- known as a denial-of-service attack -- if they did not pay up. The gang often demanded sums of $10,000 or $20,000 (5,400 to 10,800 pounds) from owners of betting Web sites and struck on the eve of big sporting events like the UK's Grand National horse race.