MAN IN HIS 60S JAILED FOR 6.5 YEARS AFTER MAKING MORE THAN £980,000 THROUGH ILLEGAL STREAMING

A 68‑year‑old man from Chorley has been sentenced to six and a half years in prison for running a large‑scale illegal IPTV operation that generated £980,812 in criminal profits.

Milan Ibrahim was convicted of conspiracy to defraud at Preston Crown Court and now faces additional proceedings under the Proceeds of Crime Act to recover the money he made from selling unlawful streaming subscriptions.

The investigation, led by the Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit (PIPCU) at the City of London Police, uncovered a sophisticated criminal enterprise supplying illegal IPTV services to thousands of customers in the UK and overseas, particularly British expats. Ibrahim captured and redistributed TV broadcasts from major rights holders — including the BBC, ITV, Sky, the Premier League and the Motion Picture Association — converting them into IPTV‑ready formats and selling access worldwide.

The business operated across 80 servers located at premises in Chorley, generating close to £1 million over three years. All servers were seized and shut down during enforcement activity, significantly disrupting the illegal service.

Detective Inspector Emma Warbey of PIPCU said Ibrahim’s actions caused real financial harm. She stressed that illegal IPTV “is not a victimless crime,” noting that piracy deprives broadcasters, rights holders and creative professionals of legitimate revenue. She added that PIPCU will continue to pursue offenders both in the UK and internationally.

Industry bodies also welcomed the conviction. FACT investigations manager Nick Sumner said the sentence “sends a clear message” that selling unlawful access to premium content carries serious consequences. Sky’s anti‑piracy director Matt Hibbert praised the collaboration required to dismantle the operation, while Premier League legal director Stefan Sergot called Ibrahim “one of the UK’s most prominent and long‑standing suppliers of pirate services.”

BBC Studios also highlighted the wider impact of piracy, saying it harms creators, businesses and licence fee payers, and welcomed PIPCU’s diligence in bringing the case to court.

Source: broadbandtvnews.com