FBI bust in Belgium
p2pnet.net News:- The FBI is a supposedly US police agency whose focus is to:
1. Protect the United States from terrorist attack.
2. Protect the United States against foreign intelligence operations and espionage.
3. Protect the United States against cyber-based attacks and high-technology crimes.
4. Combat public corruption at all levels.
5. Protect civil rights.
6. Combat transnational and national criminal organizations and enterprises.
7. Combat major white-collar crime.
8. Combat significant violent crime.
9. Support federal, state, municipal, and international partners.
10. Upgrade technology to successfully perform the FBI’s mission.
Item 4 is very clear: Combat public corruption at all levels. Yet the FBI is taking on an increasingly, and uncomfortably, obvious role as an international enforcement organization funded by American tax-payers to the benefit of the music, movie and software industries.
And as a significant industry cop, its operational boundaries are rapidly ballooning, witness its Site Down raids on behalf the huge music, movie and software cartels.
Now, FBI agents carried out house raids in Brussels, Belgium, against a software and DVD piracy gang, says Expatica News, going on:
“The gang was accused of illegally copying software, CDs and films and selling it over the internet in a large-scale operation. Raids were conducted in 15 nations, including Belgium, the Belgian Anti-piracy Foundation said. No arrests were carried out in Belgium, but the suspects targeted signed a declaration stating they will abide by regulations in future.”
But, says Expatica, “if they break that promise, legal action will be initiated, newspaper ‘De Morgen’ reported on Monday. Eight US nationals said to be the leaders of the organised gang were arrested on Friday by the US federal police service FBI.”
The FBI has also gone into the business of figuring out how much financial damage counterfeiters are allegedly doing to the cartels’ bottom lines.
It has, “estimated the gang inflicted damage to the entertainment industry totaling EUR 100 million,” adds the story.
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See:-
Site Down – Operation Site Down: Part II, p2pnet, July 15, 2005
Expatica News – FBI raids in Belgium in anti-piracy operation, August 1, 2005
