A Welsh court has handed two piracy-enabled Kodi box sellers to 16 and 21 months of jail time. Michael Jarman and Natalie Forber have been found guilty of selling over a thousand piracy-enabled Kodi devices in the past two years. Both the guilty parties have no past criminal history in the UK or abroad.
Kodi has been amidst a lot of controversies lately in the UK, with legal authorities cracking down on individuals and entities who are involved with selling piracy enabled Kodi boxes. Kodi is a legal platform that allows users to stream their favorite content. However, third-party add-ons for Kodi can allow users to access illegal pirated streams on their Kodi boxes. Many individuals and businesses sell piracy-enabled Kodi boxes to make things easier for users who want to access pirated content.
Legal authorities in the UK report that there are thousands of individuals and small businesses who are selling piracy-enabled media boxes with third-party add-ons. Michael Jarman was arrested by the UK police in January 2015 which led to an investigation by the Trading Standards officers. Both Jarman and Forber were charged with fraud once the investigation concluded.
Jarman pleaded guilty while Forber denied the charges, but eventually pleaded guilty too. Forber was found guilty of not only selling pirate Kodi boxes but also for transferring criminal property. The Caernarfon Crown Court found the pair guilty and sentenced them to jail time. A Proceeds to Justice investigation will also be launched against them soon, which could see both the guilty parties paying fines to the states if any assets from the illegal business are recovered by law enforcement. With UK legal authorities becoming stricter by the day against piracy, illegal streaming services may finally come to a close.