Local pirates busted in large counterfeit CD, DVD ring
A Fairburn man was sentenced Wednesday to four-plus years in prison for his participation in a massive piracy ring responsible for reproducing thousands of counterfeit movie and music titles a week.
Charles Ndhlovu, 34, and Scott Ahn, of Lawrenceville were among the last of 13 co-conspirators sentenced on various copyright and trademark offenses, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced. Ahn, 42, received a reduced sentence of one year and seven months in prison for testifying against several of his co-defendants. Both men were also ordered to three years of supervised release following their stints behind bars.
According to prosecutors, Ahn supplied the raw materials and technology, such as blank CDs and disc burners, while Ndhlovu purchased corresponding counterfeit labels and packaging, assembling the finished CDs and DVDs he then peddled wholesale.
The 11 other defendants have already been sentenced, though not all faced prison time. Several of the co-conspirators were ordered to pay restitution to both the motion picture and recording industry trade associations, the U.S. Attorney said.
About the Author
A native Atlantan, Boone joined the AJC staff in 2007. He quickly carved out a niche covering crime stories, assuming the public safety beat in 2014. He's covered some of the biggest trials this decade, from Hemy Neuman to Ross Harris to Chip Olsen, the latter of which was featured on Season 7 of the AJC's award-winning "Breakdown" podcast.
