Operatives of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) have arrested a suspected broadcast pirate, Mr. Ajaye West William, for the illegal redistribution of broadcast signals belonging to various right owners, in violation of the Copyright Act.
In a statement by NCC Director, Public Affairs, Vincent Oyefeso, the anti-piracy operation was executed from September 16 to 17.
“In the operation, the suspect, who had evaded arrest, was traced and apprehended by the commission’s operatives at his base in Port Harcourt, Rivers State while carrying out the unauthorised redistribution of the signals,” it stated.
According to the Director of the Commission’s Port Harcourt Office, Mr. Collins Nweke, the operation, which was carried out in collaboration with other enforcement agencies, followed months of surveillance by the operatives.
He said the contrivances seized included DSTV, GOTV, Strong and FTA decoders as well as other materials used for the illicit distribution of signals to “subscribers” who made payments to the suspect to receive the pirated signals.
According to Nweke, the suspect has made useful statements and investigation was ongoing before prosecution. “The suspect is believed to have a customer base of over 3,000 subscribers on his illegal broadcast network and the Commission is processing the information to get to the root of the crime,” he said.
The arrest came on the heels of a warning by the Director-General of NCC, Dr. John O. Asein, on Channels Television against signal piracy.
His words: “Henceforth, anyone found to be engaged in redistributing broadcast signals and all persons who connive with them in the illicit act would be arrested and prosecuted, while any contrivances found to be used for such crime would be confiscated.”
Asein urged the public to report suspicious activities in their neighbourhood to the nearest office of the Nigerian Copyright Commission.