Louisiana man sentenced for pirating CDs, DVDs

NEW ORLEANS – A Louisiana man was sentenced Wednesday to five years of probation, one year of home confinement, 100 hours of community service and a $3,000 fine after pleading guilty to criminal infringement of a copyright.

The case was investigated by special agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement's (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).  Lawrence De Jean, 38, was also ordered to pay the Motion Picture Association of America $1,817.33 in restitution. 

According to court documents, on Dec. 11, 2010, special agents with HSI encountered De Jeanat a booth at the Algiers Flea Market selling pirated CDs and DVDs.  He had in his possession approximately 10,562 pirated discs containing copyrighted works.  Immediately afterward, special agents executed a search warrant on a storage facility that De Jean rented, in which they found, identified, and confiscated over 4,800 additional pirated CDs and DVDs.  In total, the collective retail value of the pirated discs seized from De Jeanwas approximately $123,160. 

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jordan Ginsberg.

For more information, visit www.ice.gov.