Local News in Brief : Sylmar Man, 28, Pleads Guilty to Pirating Tapes

A Sylmar man who authorities say was the largest distributor of bootleg tapes in the San Fernando Valley pleaded guilty Tuesday to a pirating charge.

Miguel Penaloza Rios, 28, pleaded guilty in Municipal Court to failing to disclose the origin of more than 1,000 tape cassettes. Under a plea agreement, Rios could be sentenced to a year in County Jail, said Deputy Dist. Atty. Lee Harris. He could have been sentenced to five years in prison, authorities said.

Charges against two of Rios’ employees, Efren Cazares, 28, of Pacoima, and Miguel Arellano, 20, from Mexico, were dismissed. The three were arrested Feb. 4 as they unloaded tapes at a self-storage facility in the 10800 block of Laurel Canyon Boulevard in Pacoima, authorities said. Officers confiscated 41,659 tapes of pop, soul, country and Mexican music, said Los Angeles Police Officer Erwin Velasco.

Rios distributed tapes to people who would sell them for $2.50 to $3 each at swap meets, on street corners and in shops in North Hollywood, Sunland, Pacoima, Arleta and San Fernando, authorities said.

Velasco estimated that Rios had been in business for up to a year before his arrest and was making $20,000 to $30,000 a month. Rios is being held in County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail. He is scheduled to be sentenced March 14 in San Fernando Superior Court.