A 25 year-old has become the first man in Scotland to be convicted of offences related to card sharing.
Gavin Gray pleaded guilty at Hamilton Sheriff Court to four charges of fraud and offences under the Copyright Designs Patents Act 1988.
It follows a multi-agency operation involving Police Scotland, FACT, Sky, Virgin Media and other agencies in 2014. Gray had promoted the illegal services on dedicated card sharing websites and forums, illegally supplying homes acros Scotland.
When officers searched his home they seized £44,500 hidden in a safe in the loft. Police were also able to later seize £80,000 from his bank account.
Chief Inspector Mark Leonard, the lead for counterfeit and intellectual property for Police Scotland said: “Officers conducted an operation in conjunction with a number of agencies including FACT at the home address of Gavin Gray where they seized computer equipment and large sums of cash.
“Although people may think that this will have little impact on major broadcasters, make no mistake, the amount of money being lost is on a large scale.”
Separately, a Hartlepool man who sold illegal internet TV boxes that allowed pubs and clubs to screen pay-TV channels free of charge has received a suspended prison sentence and been ordered to pay £250,000.
