Former Drexel star student sentenced in film pirating case
A former Drexel University student was sentenced today to three years probation and a $15,000 fine for his role in a global internet piracy organization.
A former Drexel University student was sentenced today to three years probation and a $15,000 fine for his role in a global internet piracy organization.
An Duc Do, 23, who graduated Magna Cum Laude from Drexel in 2005, was a member of "Elite Torrents," a group that made movies available over the internet - sometimes before they had been officially released.
The group caught the attention of Hollywood's Motion Picture Association of America after it released Star Wars III: Revenge of the Sith, six hours before it saw its first theatrical screening. Sith was downloaded more than 10,000 times in 24 hours using the file sharing system called BitTorrent, according to the Department of Justice.
Duc Do, of Orlando, Fla., pleaded guilty in Nov. 2007 to conspiracy and copyright infringement.
Duc Do was responsible for uploading Harry Potter and the Prison of Azkahan, Flight of the Phoenix, and King Arthur to a computer server where 133,000 members could download the films.
In some circles three major motion pictures might count for a huge haul of pirated treasures. Not so among the Elite Torrent crew, said Floyd Miller, who prosecuted the case for the U.S. Attorney's office in Philadelphia.
"They threatened to kick him out of the organization because he wasn't uploading as much as some of the other pirates were doing," said Miller.
Operation D-Elite, a joint investigation by the FBI and ICE, dismantled Elite Torrent in May 2005.
Duc Do was hired by a defense contractor in Orlando after graduating from Drexel with a degree in computer science. Following sentencing today in federal court in Philadelphia, he told Miller he would have to resign his job at Lockheed Martin where he has been developing military applications for video war games.
In addition to probation and fines, Duc Do will have to serve 400 hours of community service.
One of the ringleaders of Elite Torrents, Daniel Dove, 26, of Virginia, was sentenced to 18 months in prison last week for his role in the organization.