ESA hails arrest of San Diego pirate

As a trade group representing game industry publishers, the Entertainment Software Association takes a keen interest in the issue of preserving intellectual property. To that end, the group highlights law enforcement success stories in the fight against game counterfeiters and pirates.

Today, the ESA praised the San Diego County District Attorney's Office and the Computer and Technology Crime High-Tech Response Unit (CATCH) for their arrest earlier this month of a San Diego man alleged to have pirated games. A raid of the man's home turned up more than 1,000 counterfeit discs and numerous modchips, the ESA said. The man is facing 10 felony-level counts, including grand theft, computer crime, and trafficking counterfeit marks.

"We commend the San Diego County District Attorney's Office and CATCH for their efforts on this case as another example of their strong commitment to combating intellectual property theft," said ESA president Michael Gallagher in a statement. "The entertainment software industry will provide whatever support is needed for a successful prosecution and will continue to support law enforcement efforts to reduce game piracy in its many forms."