Eight arrested for selling pirated works in Edo

Neither persons have been arrested in Benin City the Edo State capital for allegedly dealing in pirated works.

They were arrested by officials of the Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) who were on a routine raid on hotspots like Sapele road, Ramat Park and Siluko road.

Several bags of audiovisual materials were recovered from the suspects.

Zonal Head of Operations, Mr. Joseph Ajang, said the exercise was part of measures to check the spread of piracy in Edo and Delta after several petitions from intellectual property owners.

One of the suspects, Jonathan Okeke, said he was not aware that he was selling pirated works.

He said: “I buy in Benin and Lagos. Unfortunately, the NCC came to my shop and said that I sell pirated audiovisual materials.

“I have been in the business for two to three years now. But I do not know that they (audiovisual materials) are pirated material. It is my first time to hear about piracy.?”

Ajang said the suspects would be prosecuted at the end of investigation.

He said, “They will always claim ignorance. But we have been educating them that what they sell is against the law. They know the originals, yet they insist that man must survive.

“These siezed materials will serve as exhibits. They destroy the economy deny the rightful owners of the benefits of their works.

“The public should be warned that piracy is a crime and the commission has zero tolerance for piracy. We will continue this fight until we win.?”

Eight arrested for selling pirated works in Edo