2 Accused of Selling Illegal Copies of Films on Internet

The Los Angeles city attorney filed criminal charges against two men Tuesday for illegally taking unreleased films, copying them and selling them over the Internet.

James Cofer, 25, of Burbank, and Michael Gerhard, 23, of Toluca Lake, are accused of duplicating purloined copies of pre-released films from the vault of New Wave Entertainment in Burbank, said Deputy City Atty. P. Greg Parham.

They were charged with one count each of receiving stolen property, misappropriation of a trade secret and paying a bribe for access to a trade secret, Parham said. If convicted, the men could be sentenced for up to three years in County Jail and fined up to $10,000.

The alleged crimes took place between March and November 1998, Parham said.

Authorities said Cofer worked as a vault manager at the post-production company and would hand over films to Gerhard. Gerhard would then make a copy for his partner and himself before making copies that would be put up for sale on the Inernet.

Los Angeles police confiscated 448 videocassettes, 842 CDs, 272 DVDs, 32 laser discs, four VCRs and devices to defeat copyright guards, Parham said. Among the titles were “Toy Story 2,” “Mighty Joe Young,” “Mulan,” “Armageddon” and “Fantasia 2000.”

Personal papers and an address book confiscated from Gerhard’s home indicated he was selling copies of videotapes and film scores to more than 70 people via the Internet, authorities said.

Gerhard pointed authorities toward Cofer as one of his sources for the films, Parham said.

The men are scheduled to be arraigned in Los Angeles Superior Court on Aug. 22.