Seven Indicted for Extensive Counterfeit Media Operation

FRESNO, CA—United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced that today a federal grand jury returned a 10-count indictment charging Leonel Martinez Caballero, 28; Vicenta Munoz-Peralta, 38; Mariano Vega Hernandez, 24; Roman Santana, 28; and Edgar Alonso Bautista Arazate, 30; all of Modesto; Martin Munoz Peralta, 39, of San Jose; and Antonio Hernandez Sanchez, 27, of Stockton, with criminal copyright infringement, trafficking in counterfeit labels, and conspiracy to commit those offenses.

According to the indictment, Caballero managed a warehouse in Modesto that served as a distribution point for counterfeit music CDs and counterfeit movie DVDs. On July 25, 2011, the warehouse was found to contain over 100,000 counterfeit CDs and DVDs. Caballero was assisted at the warehouse by Vicenta Munoz-Peralta. The indictment also alleges that Vicenta Munoz-Peralta, Mariano Vega Hernandez, and Martin Munoz Peralta assisted Caballero in a counterfeit DVD manufacturing operation run out of Caballero’s rented residence in Modesto. Roman Santana, Edgar Alonso Bautista Arazate and Martin Munoz Peralta purchased large amounts of counterfeit media from the warehouse or Vicenta Munoz-Peralta for resale to the public. Six of the seven defendants, including Antonio Hernandez Sanchez, also sold counterfeit music CDs at a flea market in Modesto.

This case is the product of a joint investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force, with assistance from the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department. Assistant United States Attorney Henry Z. Carbajal III is prosecuting the case.

If convicted, the defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of five years in prison for each offense. 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.