The father made a small fortune flogging shady deals online to fund his gambling addiction.
Kevin O’Donnell, of Altcross Road, Croxteth, sold modified fire sticks to illegally stream subscription-based content between September 2020 and March 2023. He was caught after FACT, the anti-copyright theft federation, received intelligence about the device being sold providing unauthorized access to premium sport, TV shows and movies owned by Sky and BT.
On 3 May 2022, the organization began investigating a Facebook profile for «Kev O’James», who advertised the sale of subscription packages up to £85 on Amazon fire sticks or remotely on smart devices. The page said: “Don’t go with amateurs who have been selling for a few months. Come with us, we have been selling for many years».
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The Facebook account was linked to O’Donnell’s personal account, and both accounts were found to be run by the same person.
FACT officials then prompted a trial purchase from O’James’ account, paying £40 to a PayPal address for a 12-month subscription package. An investigation into the purchase confirmed that an illegal streaming service gave customers access to Sky and BT content.
In the six months between February and August 2022, FACT found that 574 transactions were made to the PayPal account, totaling £136,000. A further inspection in July 2023 found that both Facebook accounts were still operating and still promoting the sale of suspicious fire sticks.
O’Donnell, 41, was arrested on July 4 and admitted «sole responsibility for the offences». He appeared at Liverpool Crown Court today, June 4, where he pleaded guilty to supplying articles for the purpose of fraud and providing a service designed to circumvent technological measures.
Prosecutor Kevin Liston said: “Quantification of loss is difficult and based on averages. Sky estimates that, based on your average subscription price over the period in which the offenses occurred, the loss could have been as much as £371,000. BT, using a similar approach, estimates that losses could have been as high as £471,000. The venture potentially caused significant losses.”
Kyra Badman, defending, said: “From the outset the defendant accepted his involvement. His engagement is not as sophisticated as it may seem. He was buying sticks for £40 and making money on top of that, and that’s how the business started.
“It is clearly accepted that he was motivated by financial gain, not in terms of any lavish lifestyle, but driven by his addictions at the time: alcohol, but primarily a significant gambling addiction. These addictions were fueled by an emotional response to what was going on in his life at the time.
«His father died in September 2022 from cancer, which he suffered for two years. The defendant was extremely close to his father, he worked with him every day of his life for 20 years, and the loss of his father affected him significantly. This meant he relied more on the measures he felt helped him, alcohol and escape from gambling.”
She added that O’Donnell is the primary breadwinner for her disabled five-year-old son.
The judge, Miss Recorder Michelle Brown, said: «This is an offense which took place over a long period of time, three years. Your offending involved large sums of money, not only in terms of your potential gain, but also in terms of the potential loss caused to the businesses involved. «
She accepted that O’Donnell did not understand the seriousness of his crimes, his personal relief and a parole report that put him at low risk of re-offending in the future. She sentenced him to a total of two years in prison, suspended for two years.
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