The father made a small fortune flogging dodgy fire rods online to fund his gambling addiction.
Kevin O’Donnell, of Altcross Road, Croxteth, sold modified fire rods for the illegal streaming of subscription-based content between September 2020 and March 2023. He was caught after FACT, the anti-copyright theft federation, received information about the device being sold. providing unauthorized access to premium sport, TV shows and movies owned by Sky and BT.
On May 2022, the organization began investigating the Facebook profile of “Kev O’James” who advertised the sale of subscription packages of up to £85 on Amazon fire sticks or remotely on smart devices. The page said, “Don’t go with amateurs who have been selling for a few months. Come with us, we have been selling for many years”.
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The Facebook account was linked to O’Donnell’s personal account and it was determined that both accounts were run by the same person.
FACT officials then prompted a trial purchase from O’James’ account and paid £40 to a PayPal address for a 12-month subscription package. An investigation into the purchase confirmed that the illegal streaming service allowed customers to access Sky and BT content.
In the six months between February and August 2022, FACT found that 574 transactions were made to the PayPal account, totaling £136,000. A further inspection in July 2023 found that both Facebook accounts were still active and still promoting the sale of dodgy fire sticks.
O’Donnell, 41, was arrested on July 4 and admitted “sole criminal responsibility”. He appeared at Liverpool Crown Court today, June 4, where he pleaded guilty to supplying items for the purpose of defrauding and providing a service designed to circumvent technological measures.
Prosecutor Kevin Liston said: “Quantifying the loss is difficult and is based on an average. Sky estimates that based on your average subscription costs during the offending period, the loss could have been up to £371,000. Using a similar approach, BT estimates that losses could have been as high as £471,000. The business has potentially caused significant losses.’
Kyra Badman, defending, said: “Right from the start the defendant accepted his involvement. Its wiring is not as sophisticated as it might seem. He was buying fire sticks for £40 and still making money, so he started the business.
“It is clearly recognized that he was motivated by financial gain, not in relation to any flamboyant lifestyle, but fueled by his addictions at the time: alcohol, but above all a significant addiction to gambling. These addictions were driven by an emotional response to what was going on in his life at the time.
“His father died in September 2022 after suffering from cancer for two years. The defendant was extremely close to his father, working with him every day of his life for 20 years, and the loss of his father took a significant toll on him. This meant he was more dependent on the measures to help him, alcohol and escape from gambling.
She added that O’Donnell was the main breadwinner for his disabled five-year-old son.
The judge, Recorder Miss Michelle Brown, said: “This was an offense which took place over a long period of time, three years. Your offending involved large sums of money, not only in terms of your potential gain but also in terms of the potential harm caused participating companies.”
She accepted that O’Donnell had failed to appreciate the seriousness of his crimes, his personal mitigation and a probation report that put him at low risk of re-offending in the future. She sentenced him to a total prison term of two years, suspended for two years.
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