RIAA Anti-Piracy Seizure Information
California | Maryland | Mississippi | New York | Pennsylvania | South Carolina | Tennessee
California
April 18, 2007 – Investigators assisted detectives from the Los Angeles Police Department DSVD Unit in the service of a search warrant. During the execution of the search warrant, officials arrested the owner and seized over 14,000 Pirated Music CDs. Also seized were 1,435 Music Videos and 7,469 DVDs.
April 19, 2007 – Investigators teamed with the LAPD executed a search warrant at a residential location in Los Angeles. During the search, investigators identified and arrested a man for manufacturing and distributing pirated CDs and DVDs. Investigators took possession of the evidence and seized 40 burners, 269 CDRs, 129 Music Videos and 3,633 DVDs.
Maryland
April 2007 – While Baltimore officers were on routine patrol, they observed a suspicious blue Cadillac, parked with the engine still running. They noticed the rear passenger door open and a subject discard the tobacco from a cigar onto the ground. Sparking the interest of the officers, they made a blunt decision to investigate. A second subject in the rear passenger seat was moving around in a nervous manner. Officers advised him to keep his hands in plain view, however, he continued to be fidgety. After exiting the vehicle, the subject struggled with the officers during the pat-down. He was immediately taken to the ground when a fully loaded black .38 handgun was found in his waistband. As a last attempt, the subject threw the gun under the car, in hopes officers would not hear nor see him do so. No such luck, officers placed both men under arrest. During the continued search officers found three bags of marijuana. Also, they uncovered 190 counterfeit CDs and 81 counterfeit DVDs from the vehicle.
Mississippi
April 2007 – While on surveillance in Indianola, Mississippi, RIAA Investigators teamed up with the local police to find and stop piracy. As requested by the Police Chief, an aggressive effort had been established to fight area street vendors. Near the end of their surveillance, investigators were notified about a vendor set up using a mobile burn lab. Investigators discovered a man standing at the back of his SUV, handing something to passers-by. The police were informed of the illegal activity and were there in a matter of minutes. When officers arrived on the scene, they found no traces of ice cream or coolers inside the SUV. Instead, they uncovered what appeared to be a mobile burner lab. A 10 tower burner hooked up to a generator, allowed the men to burn supplies on demand. The two men were arrested for their illegal ice cream truck operation. Officers seized 10 burners, 3,254 counterfeit CDRs and 1,150 DVDRs.
New York
April 2007 – During the Month of April, New York officials seized 382 burners. From the 382 burners confiscated, more than 100 were seized, in two separate incidents. The first of which took place on April 3rd, with a total of 130 burners seized. Teamed with the NYPD’s OCID Unit, investigators helped execute a search warrant in Bronx, NY. One arrest was made along with the seizure of 130 burners, 3,200 CDRs, 5,900 Movie DVDRs and various boxes of raw material. The next large bust took place only a week later, when investigators worked with the NYPD 28 Pct. Together, they seized 79 burners, 487 CDRs and 660 MPAA/DVDRs. As the month wore down, investigators did not. On April 24th, alongside the NYPD’s Trademark Infringement Unit, investigators brought down two separate burner labs. The first contained 107 burners, 5,420 Pirate CDRs and 17,705 MPAA/DVDRs. Later that day, investigators diligently worked to bring down another burner lab. They helped seize 41 burners, 3,100 CDRs and 3,800 MPAA/DVDRs.
Pennsylvania
April 2007 – Philadelphia PD responded to a radio call of a burglary in process, where a retail location had been broken into. When police arrived at the store, the glass on the front door was broken. The criminal had entered through the broken glass and would have to exit the way he went in. As officials waited, sure enough, the man exited the door through the area where the glass had been. The subject was immediately arrested. Just as the case seemed to be wrapped up, officers entered the premises to determine if anyone else was inside. Instead, they noticed thousands of CDs and DVDs that appeared to be counterfeit. There were DVDs on shelves and many more CDs in boxes and bags strewn across the floor and in closets. After receiving permission to enter the building, officials found numerous empty spindles for CDs and DVDs. The location appeared to be a burner lab, however, no burners had been found. It was unknown if the burglars had taken them, or if there were none to begin with. Officers finally seized 1,123 CDs, 8,000 DVDs and numerous boxes of raw material.
South Carolina
April 19, 2007 – RIAA Investigators and Florence PD executed a search warrant at a retail location. The business was occupied by several subjects who quickly secured the building. The men then kicked a hole in the wall, allowing them to enter another business. After police entered the store, they noticed the hole in the wall. No arrests were made, however, officials seized 486 CDRs and 400 DVDRs.
Tennessee
April 11, 2007 – RIAA Investigators assisted the Knoxville Police Department with an investigation into a local marketing company. They had been the subject of two previous investigations for pirated product. Officials executed a search warrant from the previous investigations and uncovered a burner lab. Authorities seized 15 burners, 5,294 counterfeit/pirated CDRs and 3,534 DVDRs.