Video Pirate Gets 22 Months In Brig

Beshara also sentenced to two years of supervised release

By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/6/2012 3:16:51 PM

A co-founder of defunct online TV and movie download site NinjaVideo has been sentenced to 22 months in prison for criminal copyright conspiracy, according to the Justice Department.

Hana Amal Beshara of North Brunswick, N.J., was also sentenced to two years of supervised release, 500 hours of community service, and must repay over $200,000 she profited from the site, which, according to court documents, allowed users to illegally down load free copies of copyrighted TV shows immediately after they aired and movies still in the theaters and, in some cases, even before they were in the theaters. She must also forfeit computer equipment used in the operation.

According to Justice, citing court records, Beshara, known as "Queen Phara," "served as the public face of NinjaVideo.net. She supervised the uploading and placement of infringing television programs and motion pictures on the website and served as the lead moderator of the website's forum boards.

Justice shut the site down in 2010. Beshara pled guilty last fall along with other co-founders of the site. Joshua Evans is due for sentencing Jan. 27, and Jeremy Andrew Feb. 3.

Justice is cracking down on IP theft through its Task Force on Intellectual Property and as part of a general approach to a "growing number of domestic and international intellectual property crimes."