Three Arrested for Selling Counterfeit DVDs and Pirated CDs at Outdoor Valley Stream Flea Market

Three men sold pirated DVDs of brand-new films

MINEOLA, NY - Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced today the arrest of three men who sold pirated DVD copies of major films still in theaters and bootleg CDs to undercover investigators at the outdoor Green Acres Mall Flea Market. The arrests are the result of a joint investigation by the DA’s Office, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA).

Charged with Failure to Disclose the Origin of a Recording in the First Degree is Maximino Cortes, 50, of Brooklyn; Theodore U. Akabuogu, 45, of Brooklyn; and Delroy Thompson, 56, of Springfield Gardens, Queens. Each faces up to four years in prison if convicted. All three are due back in court tomorrow.

Rice said that undercover investigators from her office, the RIAA and MPAA, and members of the Nassau County Police Department’s 5th Precinct arrested the three men on August 15 after RIAA officials received a tip that the men were selling pirated CDs and bootlegs of recently released movies at the flea market.

Surveillance conducted at the seasonal outdoor flea market, which operates in the Green Acres Mall parking lot, revealed that the men were selling DVDs of movies that were still in theaters, including “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince,” “Funny People,” and “Bruno.” The CDs recovered consisted of numerous popular artists from the past and present, ranging in taste from salsa to hip-hop to reggae, and included several Michael Jackson albums.

“Theft in all its forms will be taken seriously by my office,” Rice said. “Stealing copyrighted material not only denies financial credit to the people who work on a film or album, but raises the prices for tickets and products for law-abiding customers. I want to thank both the MPAA and RIAA for their assistance in this investigation.”

Handling the case for the DA’s Office is ADA Robert J. Owens of the Economic Crimes Bureau. All three defendants are represented by the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County.

The charges are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.