inthemix | International News | UK file-sharers arrested

Six people in the UK have been arrested for file-sharing on recently shut-down website OiNK, becoming the first ever British individuals to face such charges.

As reported by The Guardian, five men and one woman were taken in by police this week in relation to their activities on OiNK. They were later released on bail “pending further enquiries”. As part of ‘Operation Ark Royal’, a joint crackdown by Cleveland Police, Interpol and the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry, OiNK was shut down in October 2007. It was identified as “the biggest source for pre-releases at the time we moved to shut it down” by the British Phonographic Industry. OinK founder Alan Ellis was subsequently arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and copyright infringement.

These six arrests set a new precedent for the British Police; the first time direct action has been taken against autonomous users of a file-sharing site. Those arrested will appear in court on 1 July.