2 November 2007
Counterfeiters arrested in Hull
Four houses in Kingston upon Hull were raided this morning following an investigation into a major illegal CD and DVD manufacturing operation.
Items seized during the raids included thousands of CDs and DVDs, 52 CD and DVD duplicating burners and all the materials necessary to manufacture these products.
The two day investigation was carried out by the Critical Investigations Team at Humberside Police and was assisted by the MCPS Anti-Piracy Unit (APU) - the organisation that monitors the illegal use of the works of composers and songwriters.
Four people were arrested and are due to be questioned later today relating to alleged counterfeiting offences.
A spokesperson for the MCPS Anti-Piracy Unit said: ‘Buying pirated music costs us all in the long run. Piracy takes money out of the economy – money that could otherwise be spent on improving our communities.
‘MCPS would like to praise the professionalism of the Humberside Police during the investigation.’
DS Mike Reed at Humberside Police said: ‘Thanks to information received from members of the public we have made four arrests in relation to counterfeit goods in Hull.
‘It is important the public remain vigilant and report suspicious activity to police and other agencies so we can stamp out counterfeiting.’
Anybody with information regarding counterfeiting activities can phone the MCPS Anti-Piracy Unit on 0207 306 4053.
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PRESS CONTACT: Catherine George, telephone; 020 7306 4777, email; press@mcps-prs-alliance.co.uk
EDITORS NOTES:
About MCPS - The Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society (MCPS) is a not-for-profit organisation that ensures its 17,000 composer, songwriter and music publisher members are paid royalties when the music they have created is recorded; CDs, DVDs, downloads, computer games and everything in between. MCPS works in an operational alliance with PRS – the Performing Right Society (the MCPS-PRS Alliance) - creating a future for music. www.mcps.co.uk
About the MCPS Anti-Piracy Unit - Working alongside UK enforcement agencies, the MCPS Anti-Piracy Unit investigates infringements of MCPS members' copyrights.