The Attorney General has formally appealed a Maltese court decision that denied the extradition of Daniel Joe Meli to the United States, days after the suspected hacker won his legal battle to avoid being sent abroad.

The appeal was filed last week, challenging a judgment handed down on May 13, which found that US authorities had failed to present sufficient evidence to meet the legal threshold required under Maltese extradition laws.

Meli, 28, from Żabbar, is wanted by US law enforcement on charges linked to the alleged sale of remote access trojans (RATs) via the dark web between 2012 and 2022. US authorities allege the software was used to unlawfully access and control victims' computers and servers.

His arrest in February 2023 came after a joint operation involving the Malta Police Force, the Attorney General's office, the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the US Department of Justice.

Initially, Meli had agreed to be extradited. However, he later changed his mind and mounted a legal challenge, using new procedural safeguards introduced in Maltese law last year. These changes gave defendants more time to reflect on their decision and provided greater protections before extradition could proceed.

The court ultimately dismissed the US request, criticising what it described as a "fairly lax" evidentiary approach by the prosecution and concluding that the legal burden of proof was not met.

Meli has since been granted bail and remains in Malta.

His case has drawn significant public attention, including a petition against his extradition that has garnered over 4,000 signatures. A parliamentary petitions committee has also endorsed continued support for the petition, urging the government not to extradite him.

Meli is represented by lawyers Arthur Azzopardi and Franco Debono.