Singapore's efforts at stamping out intellectual property violations such as video piracy were given a recent boost by a major raid by the police.
A five-man team from the Central Police Division responded to a tip-off in busting an illegal VCD network in the Bugis Village area. The raid led to the seizure of more than 7,000 VCDs and close to 2,000 CD-ROMs, having a estimated street value amounting to $90,000.
The illegal network operated by openly displaying the latest movie titles such as Bats and Hollow Man, alongside uncensored and obscene VCDs at a makeshift stall. Its supplies secretly came from a deserted-looking but well-fortified shop-house that was just a few metres away from the stall. A lookout equipped with a walkie-talkie was stationed to warn of police raids.
The police uncovered the operations of the network after arresting one of the suspects who had emerged from the shop-house with a customer, as well as two others who were manning the stall. The police then entered the shop-house which turned out to be a store-house where VCDs were being packed into plastic sleeves.
The successful raid is likely to cut off a key distribution network from other stalls which had relied on it for supplies. The local illegal VCD trade looks set to take a further beating as the police continue to step up their efforts to curb such activities, which also infringe the copyright owned by movie companies and distributors.
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