Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

MegaUpload Programmer Pleads Guilty, Gets a Year In Prison

Posted by Soulskill on from the first-domino-falls dept.

An anonymous reader writes When MegaUpload was shut down a few years back, seven of the company's employees were indicted by the U.S. We heard a lot about Kim Dotcom's court proceedings, but not much about the others. A few days ago, we received word that programmer Andrus Nomm has been arrested in Virginia. This came as a surprise to everyone involved. MegaUpload attorney Ira Rothken said it was likely Nomm had made a deal with the Feds. Now, we know for sure: Nomm has pleaded guilty to felony copyright infringement and was sentenced to a year and a day in prison. In a statement, the Department of Justice said they will continue to pursue his co-conspirators.

2 of 188 comments (clear)

  1. A programmer arrested for © infringement? by hcs_$reboot · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Isn't a programmer an employee doing what he is requested to do - and anyway making programmes does not infringe copyright laws. It seems everyone has to pay a price in this megaupload story, in order to send a strong and threatening message.

    --
    Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
    1. Re:A programmer arrested for © infringement? by Okian+Warrior · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Yea, that's not a defense to anything. If I'm an accountant, and my boss tells me to do the books, I'm still committing a felony if I do it, and actually could be committing a felony if I don't immediately report the request to the relevant authorities. TFA clearly states that the defendant knew that what his employers were asking him to do was illegal, and he did it anyway.

      Round one of "devil's advocate", now it's my turn.

      Suppose you're a sysadmin for the NSA and you discover they are committing a felony. Should you then report it to the relevant authorities?