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This happened in Australia so it might be totally different, but if it happened in the US: a warrant for search and seizure of evidence requires less cause than a warrant for arrest, especially in the case where it's digital evidence that can be destroyed without a trace quite easily.

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IANAL, but I believe they can seize the evidence if they have probable cause that a crime has been committed.

In this case it would be easy to establish probable cause given how open this guy has been with his hacking.

What I'm not sure of is how long its reasonable for the police to retain the seized equipment. Although the guy said he was unemployed, I think most IT people could make a case that the seizure of all computing equipment impedes their ability to earn a living. That doesnt seem fair if no charge s have been laid.

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