Arrest in movie bootlegging scheme
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LOS ANGELES, California (CNN) -- As part of a Los Angeles-based investigation into the bootlegging major motion pictures, an Illinois man was arrested on charges of copyright infringement and illegal interception of a satellite signal, according to the FBI.
Russell William Sprague, 51, of Homewood, Illinois, was booked Thursday night in connection with pirated films being sold on the Internet -- in some cases, prior to their theatrical or DVD releases.
Sprague is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Chicago Friday morning.
"Stealing movies is tantamount to taking money out of the pockets of everyone involved with the film industry," said United States Attorney Debra W. Yang in a statement.
Felony criminal copyright infringement carries a maximum penalty of 3 years in prison and felony illegal interception of a satellite signal is punishable with up to a 5-year prison term. Each charge carries a $250,000 fine.
Among the movies being illegally sold off the Internet: "Master and Commander," "Last Samurai," "Matrix Revolutions," "Mystic River," "Gods and Generals," "Mighty Wind," "Matchstick Men," "Something's Gotta Give," "Love Actually," "Thirteen" and "Calendar Girls."
The releases are from major film studios like Warner Brothers, Sony Pictures, Universal, Fox, and Disney.
FBI forensic analysis revealed that many of the compromised movies were derived from Motion Picture Academy screeners that were embedded with a new digital watermark that discretely identifies the individual screening tape. This watermark can then be linked to the recipient of the screener.
Screeners are promotional copies of films -- either on tape or DVD -- provided by studios to potential voters for various movie awards.
Most of the compromised movies had been provided to Carmine Caridi, a 69-year-old veteran actor of film and television, and a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for approximately 22 years.
An investigation of Caridi revealed that for at least the last 3 years, he had supplied Sprague with virtually every Academy screener -- about 60 per year.
The FBI's Chicago division Thursday searched the Sprague residence in Illinois. Hundreds of Academy screeners were seized -- many of which had been converted to DVD -- along with an array of duplication equipment. Illegal satellite television interception equipment was also seized during the search.
