Illegal streaming gang jailed for selling cut-price Premier League subscriptions

Five members of an illegal streaming gang have been jailed for a total of more than 30 years for offering cheap subscriptions for Premier League games to tens of thousands of customers.

The operation made more than £7m from at least 50,000 customers and resellers. Mark Gould, described by the judge as the driving force, was sentenced to 11 years at Chesterfield crown court on Tuesday after being found guilty of conspiracy to defraud, money laundering and contempt of court.

Steven Gordon was jailed for five years and nine months for two counts of conspiracy to defraud. Peter Jolley was sentenced to five years and two months for two counts of conspiracy to defraud and one count of money laundering after concealing £500,000 in his parents’ bank accounts. The Premier League said Christopher Felvus had pleaded guilty to two counts of conspiracy to defraud and was jailed for three years and 11 months.

William Brown, who pleaded not guilty, claimed to have been an undercover informant acting in the interest of law enforcement. But the Premier League said the 33-year-old hacked legitimate customers’ accounts to access and copy streams for them to take the blame if identified by authorities. He was jailed for four years and nine months, the Premier League said.

“The sentences handed down, which are the longest sentences ever issued for piracy-related crimes, vindicate the efforts made to bring these individuals to justice and reflect the severity and extent of the crimes,” said the Premier League’s lawyer Kevin Plumb.

The streaming organisations – Flawless, Shared VPS and Optimal – also offered global TV channels and on-demand films and shows in addition to live Premier League matches, according to the Premier League, which makes