jLawFuel – Special agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation this morning arrested a Culver City man on charges that he violated federal copyright laws by posting nine songs from Guns N’ Roses’ unreleased album Chinese Democracy on his website.
Kevin Cogill, who uses the online moniker “Skwerl,” admitted to investigators that he posted the songs on his website, www.antiquiet.com, according to a criminal complaint.
Cogill, 27, is expected to make his initial court appearance this afternoon in United States District Court in Los Angeles. If Cogill is convicted of the copyright infringement charges, he faces a maximum statutory sentence of three years in federal prison, or five years if proven that he did it for financial gain.
An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
The investigation into Cogill was conducted by the FBI, which received assistance from the Recording Industry Association of America.
CONTACT: Assistant United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian
Cyber and Intellectual Property Crimes Section
(213) 894-0757
