LOS ANGELES (AP) – A New York man who allegedly sent more than a million spam e-mails to members of a networking Web site was arrested for investigation of hacking, authorities said Thursday.

Anthony Greco, 18, of Cheektowaga, N.Y., was arrested Wednesday when he arrived at Los Angeles International Airport, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Hoffstadt.

Authorities say Greco created thousands of accounts on MySpace.com and used them to send approximately 1.5 million unsolicited e-mails to the Web site’s members.

According to its Web site, MySpace.com provides a free forum for members interested in such things as chatting online, meeting others with similar interests, keeping in touch with family members and finding old friends.

After sending the spam e-mails, authorities say, Greco contacted MySpace.com and requested he be given exclusive rights to send commercial e-mail through the site. When his request was ignored, authorities say, he threatened to share his spamming techniques with others.

Meanwhile, the company spent more than $5,000 deleting spam e-mail from its servers and protecting itself against future attacks, according to the government.