Warez group leader finally sentenced in copyright infringement case

We reported two months ago that Hew Griffiths, the leader of the Warez group "DrinkOrDie" had pleaded guilty to copyright infringement after years of living as a fugitive. He was extradited from his home in Australia to the US for the sentencing.

Yesterday, he was sentenced to 51 months in prison for his guilty plea for conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement.

"From his home in Australia, Griffiths became one of the most notorious leaders of the underground Internet piracy community by orchestrating the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars in copyrighted material," said Assistant Attorney General Alice Fisher in a statement.

DrinkOrDie is said to have been responsible for over $50 million USD in losses to software groups, record labels and movie studios during its run from 1993 to 2001. In the latter year the group was dismantled after 70 raids on their servers and homes occurred in the US, UK, Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Australia.

Because Griffiths spent three years in a detention center in Australia the judge said he will only have to serve 15 months of his sentence.

Source:
Arstechnica

Written by: Andre Yoskowitz @ 25 Jun 2007 14:56

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14 comments

borhan9

Quote:Because Griffiths spent three years in a detention center in Australia the judge said he will only have to serve 15 months of his sentence.This comment reminds me of the David Hicks issue Australia and the USA had just recently.

25.6.2007 15:56 #1

fett716

Its good to see the US government can bring such a "criminal"to justice.If only they could be as efficent at catching so REAL criminals.
What a joke.

25.6.2007 16:07 #2

fett716

Originally posted by fett716:Its good to see the US government can bring such a "criminal"to justice.If only they could be as efficent at catching some REAL criminals.
What a joke.

25.6.2007 16:08 #3

windsong

15 months? Not bad :)

He'll be out in 9 for good behavior.

25.6.2007 17:13 #4

OzMick

15 months PLUS the 36 he's already served = 51 months. Sure it was a lot of value worth of stuff, but at least 80% of it wouldn't have been purchased anyway.

Hicks pleads guilty to "Materially Aiding Terrorism" and will end up having done 72 months when he is released end of the year. Granted, he's probably suffered a lot worse for his time at Guantanamo, but still.

Doesn't quite add up if you ask me. Maybe we should divert a few BILLION from the war on terror and focus on our obviously bigger threats at home, yarr, the pirates be comin'.

25.6.2007 17:44 #5

sk8flawzz

wish they could find 2pac's killer or osama bin laden as quickly

25.6.2007 17:53 #6

Cfusion

ANyone seen Jenna Jameson ?

26.6.2007 06:14 #7

Vios

i agree the gov needs to catch real criminals.. like say biggie's killer or osama . god and they also spend so much punishing pot smokers its redic. they should spend more time tryin to catch the kid who robbed like 2700 of my stuff when moved into my mas new house. i know who it is but they cant bring any justice. its been a while since i posted here.

i love afterdawn !

_vios

26.6.2007 12:23 #8

miraail28

I usually don't post too much either but your dead on Vios about the government priorities being screwed up.

27.6.2007 03:05 #9

j_edge

Originally posted by miraail28:I usually don't post too much either but your dead on Vios about the government priorities being screwed up.a) "our" government does not represent we the people anymore, but is a wholly owned and operated subsidiary of Corporate Amerika

b) there's no desire to catch Osama bin Laden within the higher levels of the government. Having him on the loose serves their purposes so much better, allowing them to continue suspending individual rights in the name of the "War on Terror". There's a chance he will be captured or killed sometime next year to give their side a boost in the election, but no worries, they will get a replacement bogeyman in soon afterward...

-jE

27.6.2007 03:57 #10

Parodius4

Ugh, how can they say "They cost companies 50 million dollars". Someone downloaded the product to use it, does not cost the company a single farking penny.

28.6.2007 18:10 #11

pmshah

"our" government does not represent we the people anymore, but is a wholly owned and operated subsidiary of Corporate Amerika

Isn't it a pity that the masses swallow the bull dished out by the politicians paid for by Corporate Amerika?

Still the fault lies with the people for not pondering over the "bull" & forming an independent educated opinion.

29.6.2007 20:31 #12

HalfHuman

yeah! punish the criminal!
i heard a joke a while ago. there were some inmates in a prison. they were talking about the crimes they were in for. some admitted that he robbed a bank, another that he killed someone. the baddest guy with the longest sentence was in for downloading counter strike and three episodes of "Lassie". :)

5.7.2007 04:44 #13

lamanga

Just Bloody typical aint it , no wonder this world is such a screwed up place. Its time for us all to realise that Governments( ALL ) really do not give a toss for anybody unless they can make a buck or two for themselves. Terrorists, Perverts ( pedophiles, rapists etc..) Murderers, Con Men ( especially Big Business) . Hell there OK, just throw the book at the odd one or two now & again , thatl keep the morons , ER I MEAN THE MASSES happy for a while !
But dont dare to even think about giving anything away for free ! WHAT ! We are gonna lock your sorry arse up for a loooong time sonny boy . Maybe 20 years or so from now it could even be a crime that will see you executed for it . Not beyond the realms of possibility i'm afraid ;Hey the way BIG BROTHER is going I could probably get life for writing this . Help, any-one know where i can buy an oozi for a bit of self protection.

10.7.2007 04:18 #14

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