Anyone who download or streamed films illegally in the past 8 years then you probably remember Megaupload! The site which was shutdown in 2012 has been fighting a copyright infringement case which saw its first conviction yesterday, Ars Technica reports. One of the lead programmers Andrus Nõmm plead guilty to felony copyright infringement and was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison.
Nõmm who’s been on the run finally was captured in the Netherlands, fighting extradition. Megaupload owner Kim Dotcom is accused of running the now-defunct file storage site as a piracy ring and encouraging users to upload copyrighted material illegally. Dotcom and the five other co-defendants are all fighting extradition from outside the US while criminal charges against them remain pending.
A statement from the Department of Justicesays Nõmm admitted he was aware that copyrighted material was being stored on Megaupload’s servers, including files containing the FBI’s anti-piracy warning. “Nomm also admitted that he personally downloaded copyright-infringing files from the Mega websites,” the statement says. “Despite his knowledge in this regard, Nomm continued to participate in the Mega Conspiracy.”
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell said, “We intend to see to it that all those responsible are held accountable for illegally enriching themselves by stealing the creative work of US artists and creators.”
An extradition hearing for Dotcom in Auckland, New Zealand is scheduled for June 2015, according to the Department of Justice.
Source: The VERGE
