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Last Thursday, a former employee of a
multinational DVD and Blu-ray manufacturer and
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distributor in Memphis, Tennessee, was
sentenced to 57 months in prison,
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nearly 5 years for stealing DVDs and Blu-rays
of blockbuster movies.
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And selling them before their release dates.
According to the Justice Department,
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38-year-old Stephen R.
Hale of Memphis,
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Tennessee worked for the DVD manufacturer.
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From February 2021 to March 2022, Hale stole
more than 1000 discs as they were being
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prepped for commercial distribution in the
United States.
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Some of the movies included are Dune, F9, The
Fast Saga,
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Venom, Let There Be Carnage, Godzilla versus
Kong and Black Widow.
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Hale sold the DVDs and Blu-rays that were not
yet available to the public through e-commerce
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sites.
Perhaps the most significant loss happened when
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Hale ripped a copy of Spider-Man No Way Home
and then made it available as an illegal
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download more than a month before the Blu-ray’s
official release date.
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The movie was downloaded tens of millions of
times while the DOJ
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said Hale created an estimated loss of tens of
millions of dollars to the copyright owner.
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The court document from the plea deal says,
quote, the infringement amount is more than
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$15,000 and not more than $40,000.
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Hale pleaded guilty in May 2025 to criminal
copyright infringement and agreed to make full
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restitution to his victims, which included
returning some 1160 stolen DVDs.
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And Blu-rays.
Hale was also charged with unlawful possession
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of a pistol.
He has prior felony convictions for armed
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robbery and attempted robbery, and he had a
firearm loaded with 1 live round in the chamber
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and 13 in the magazine.
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Hale also pleaded guilty in the gun case, which
was then merged with the DVD case for
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sentencing.
In a statement, Acting Assistant Attorney
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General Matthew Galeotti of the Justice
Department’s Criminal Division.
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Said the sentencing displayed the DOJ’s quote,
commitment to protecting American innovation
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from pirates that would exploit others’ work for
a quick profit.
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I’m David Manti, this is Manufacturing Now.