Monday, November 10, 2008

Kevin 'Skwerl' Cogill Pleads Guilty


The Los Angeles man arrested on accusations that he uploaded nine pre-released Guns N' Roses songs from the upcoming Chinese Democracy album has agreed to plead guilty to one federal count of copyright infringement as part of a deal, authorities said Monday.

"Yes. There is a plea deal," Los Angeles federal prosecutor Craig Missakian said in a telephone interview.

Kevin Cogill, who the FBI said confessed to uploading the nine songs last summer to his music site, antiquiet, is scheduled to enter a plea December 8. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Still, authorities reduced the charge from a felony to a misdemeanor last month — a move that exposes him to a maximum one-year prison term, down from the previous five years. Because of an acceptance of responsibility and the defendant's lack of a criminal record, the 27-year-old Cogill is likely to receive substantially less time, if any.

"His sentence is up to a judge," Missakian said.

Cogill's attorney, David Kaloyanides, was not immediately available for comment. It was not known whether the 27-year-old Cogill, as part of the deal, must acknowledge where he obtained the nine tracks he is accused of uploading on June 18.

Wired

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