Home Sacramento Press Releases 2011 Eight Indicted for Large-Scale Counterfeit Media Operation
Info
This is archived material from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) website. It may contain outdated information and links may no longer function.

Eight Indicted for Large-Scale Counterfeit Media Operation

U.S. Attorney’s Office January 13, 2011
  • Eastern District of California (916) 554-2700

FRESNO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced today that a federal grand jury returned a four-count indictment charging Jose Colorado Munoz, Alfredo Colorado, Miguel Gomez, Victor Puga Quiroz, all of Modesto; Luis Coahuilas Puntos, of Merced; Eleazar Ortiz Gomez, of Sacramento; Carlos Benavidez Tejeda, of Sacramento; and Abel Fabela Zaragoza, of Sacramento, with conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement and traffic in counterfeit labels. The ages of the defendants have not yet been determined.

The indictment alleges that Colorado Munoz, and Miguel Gomez managed a warehouse in San Jose that served as a distribution point for counterfeit music CDs and a manufacturing site for counterfeit movie DVDs. The indictment further alleges that Quiroz and Eleazar Gomez purchased large amounts of counterfeit CDs and DVDs from the warehouse for resale at various flea markets and other locations in Merced, Galt, and elsewhere. Puntos assisted Quiroz, while Zaragoza and Tejeda assisted Eleazar Gomez, in selling the counterfeit CDs and DVDs.

Zaragoza and Tejeda are in custody and scheduled for arraignment in Sacramento at 2:00 p.m. Puntos, Quiroz, and Eleazar Gomez are set to appear in Fresno at 1:30 p.m. Colorado Munoz and Miguel Gomez are at large.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Henry Z. Carbajal III and Brian W. Enos are prosecuting the case.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison for each count. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

The charges are only allegations and the defendants are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

This content has been reproduced from its original source.