The court has sentenced five members of an illegal streaming gang who unlawfully sold cheap Premier League subscription , resulting in a combined prison term of over 30 years
With the help of at least 50,000 customers and resellers, the Premier League subscription business made more than £7 million. During the proceedings at Chesterfield Crown Court on Tuesday, the judge referred to Mark Gould as the driving force. Upon convicting him of conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, and contempt of court, the court handed him an 11-year sentence.
For two counts of conspiring to defraud, Steven Gordon received a five years and nine months sentence.Peter Jolley concealed £500,000 in his wallet, resulting in a five-year and two-month sentence for two counts of conspiracy to commit fraud and one count of money laundering. The Premier League stated that Christopher Felvus, who pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud, received a three-year and 11-month jail term.
William Brown, who pleaded not guilty, claimed to have been an undercover informant acting in the interest of law enforcement. But the Premier League said the 33-year-old hacked legitimate customers’ accounts to access and copy streams for them to take the blame if identified by authorities. According to the Premier League, he received a prison sentence of four years and nine months.
Longest Sentences Ever Issued for Piracy-Related Crimes
“The sentences handed down, which are the longest sentences ever issued for piracy-related crimes, vindicate the efforts made to bring these individuals to justice and reflect the severity and extent of the crimes,” said the Premier League’s lawyer Kevin Plumb.
The streaming organisations – Flawless, Shared VPS and Optimal – also offered global TV channels and on-demand films and shows in addition to live Premier League matches, according to the Premier League, which makes billions of pounds each year from broadcast rights.
In addition to his convictions for multiple unrelated offenses, including possessing indecent child imagery, Felvus is currently the subject of another ongoing separate investigation. The Met arrested him as he attempted to leave the country.
“This prosecution is another concrete example of the clear links between piracy and wider criminality, a warning we repeatedly make,” said Plumb.
A rare private prosecution follows the prosecution of three men in 2019 for providing illegal streaming access to over 1,000 pubs, clubs, and homes in England and Wales. The court sentenced them to a total of 17 years.
Plumb expressed satisfaction, stating, “The courts, through rulings like this, continue to demonstrate their recognition of the significance of safeguarding the Premier League’s rights. It is the Premier League’s ability to sell broadcast rights that enables us to make a substantial financial contribution to the entire football pyramid.”