<p>ALBERT BRYNDZA, also known as "Kortelio," age 35, of Parlin, New Jersey, was sentenced by Chief United States District Judge Robert N. Chatigny in Hartford to three years of probation, the first six months of which BRYNDZA must serve confined to his home. Judge Chatigny also ordered BRYNDZA to pay a fine in the amount of $7500 and to perform 120 hours of community service. On March 8, 2005, BRYNDZA waived indictment and pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit criminal copyright infringement. This matter stems from a multinational software piracy investigation known as "Operation Higher Education."</p>
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According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in court, between June 1999 and April 2004, BRYNDZA was a participant in the "warez scene," an underground online community consisting of individuals and organized groups who engage in the large scale reproduction, modification and distribution of copyrighted software over the internet. BRYNDZA was a member of Fairlight and Kalisto, online piracy release groups that specialized in the illegal distribution of computer games, including PC and console games. BRYNDZA has admitted that he built and operated two large servers for use by members of the Fairlight and Kalisto groups (among others) to store and distribute thousands of titles of pirated software and other digital media. From June 2000 to April 2004, Kalisto was responsible for releasing to the warez scene pirated copies of more than 500 well-known, copyrighted computer games, often before the date of their legitimate commercial release.</p>