Early
on Sunday morning in the U.K. anti-piracy officials raided a hideout
for illegal traders at a Staffordshire car boot sale, leading to the
confiscation of 20,000 illegally copied discs with an estimated street
value of over half a million pounds (roughly 1 million U.S. dollars).
This raid was conducted by the Staffordshire Police and supported by the ELSPA (Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association), Staffordshire Trading Standards, FACT
(Federation Against Copyright Theft) and Customs and Excise, uncovered
a total of 20 stores selling pirated games along with a plethora of
other contraband. Pirate copies of DOOM 3 was the most
prevalent game title, while officers discovered a small amount of
previously unseen fake GameCube mini discs. Two people were rung up for
offences against the Trade Marks Act 1994 and the case is currently
proceeding with the offenders facing possible prosecution.

"This
case illustrates the way in which piracy poses a threat to members of
the public, allowing titles containing unregulated adult-rated content
to be sold illegally without the enforcement of our rigorous ratings
system, which is strictly adhered to by legitimate retail outlets,"
commented Roger Bennett, director general of ELSPA. "ELSPA would like
to thank all those involved for their efforts to eradicate computer and
video games piracy."