An Iowa City man has pleaded guilty to being a computer software pirate. Twenty-six-year-old Jathan Desir is the first to be convicted in a U.S. Justice Department investigation called “Operation Fastlink.” Over a hundred homes and businesses in 27 states and 11 other countries were searched this past spring. Desir has pleaded guilty to copyright infringement and conspiracy for running two web sites that illegally sold copyrighted software, games, movies and music in an underground on-line community called a “warez scene.” He faces up to 15 years in prison. Matthew Whitaker, the U.S. Attorney for Southern Iowa, says the theft of intellectual property is a serious crime and people are better off when the market works and people aren’t illegally copying and using stolen software.
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