by Australian Screen Association
To view Video Clip (2m38s): Roy Billing at the Pirate DVD Destruction
Around 1.2 million counterfeit DVDs were destroyed by court today following a recent criminal case where a man and woman were charged in relation to the possession and sale of thousands of High Quality Counterfeit (HQC) DVDs.
Mosaic Defredes and his accomplice, Allison Daniel were recently sentenced following the seizure of 1.2 million DVDs in 2013 which, if sold, would equate to approximately $21 million.
Defredes, who has been in remand since June 2016 was sentenced to an accumulated total of four years and six months with a three year non-parole period. In the case of Alison Daniel the judge has ordered for her to be assessed for an Intensive Correction Order in the community.
Included in the counterfeit DVDs were several Australian television series and movies including the Underbelly series, Red Dog, the Sapphires and Winners & Losers. Popular Australian Actor, Roy Billing who starred in the popular Underbelly series attended the destruction and very happily threw some counterfeit Underbelly DVDs into the shredder.
“A lot of remarkable Australian talent worked on Underbelly. Not just the actors, but writers, directors, the production team and set builders. It’s disheartening to see such little regard for the amazing work that goes into such a great television series that so many people enjoyed. I urge the Australian public to take advantage of the abundance of legal viewing options and support the future of Australian television and film. Nothing good will ever come from piracy. It’s a scourge that is undermining the growth and sustainability of our industry.”
The destruction of the DVDs took place at the Shred-X facility in Blacktown with representation from the Police and the Australian Screen Association. Police attendance at the event included Acting Superintendent Commander Quakers Hill LAC and Paul Carrett, Detective Superintendent, Commander Property Crime Squad, Murray Chapman. Amongst the counterfeit DVDs destroyed were Australian TV series Underbelly and Winners and Losers.
As background, investigators from the Australian Screen Association (ASA) had supported Detectives from Quakers Hill Police which found that Defredes had also sold over 65,000 DVDs totalling over $1.6 million in sales on eBay to unsuspecting buyers.
Defredes and Daniel plead guilty to two counts contrary to 132AJ and 132AC of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth).
Penalties for such crimes under the Commonwealth Copyright Act carry a maximum of five years’ imprisonment and/or a fine of $90,000 per offence.
Defredes is also faced further State and Federal offences for fraud and false passport applications including one count relating to the 192J Crimes Act (NSW), relating to identification information, and another count relating to the 29(1) Passport Act.
The Australian Screen Association has operated since 2004 and was previously known as The Australian Federation Against Copyright Theft (AFACT). Our aim is to promote and protect the intellectual property rights of our members, and encourage the legal consumption of film and TV content across all platforms.&