Press Release
For Immediate Release
July 11, 2002
|
U.S. Department of Justice
United States Attorney
James K. Vines
United States Attorney
Byron M. Jones
Assistant U.S. Attorney
|
Nashville, TN - July 11 , 2002 - James K. Vines, U.S. Attorney for the
Middle District of Tennessee, announced that the Sixth Circuit Court of
Appeals today affirmed the 72-month federal prison sentence imposed against
Alvin Lee Lewis, formerly of Thompson Station, Tennessee. Lewis was convicted
for manufacturing and selling satellite television signal theft devices
and for money laundering. According to satellite television industry observers
this is the longest sentence yet imposed in a satellite television piracy
prosecution in the United States.
Lewis, 46, was convicted May 28, 1999 on twelve counts of conspiracy,
fraud and money laundering after a jury trial. These convictions stemmed
from a fraudulent scheme in which Lewis and his then 20-year-old nephew,
Brandon Scott, manufactured and sold electronic devices that unscrambled
all satellite television channels, including premium channels and pay-per-view
programming, without payment of the required subscription fees to satellite
television programming providers. The money laundering convictions were
based upon Lewis use of the proceeds from this mail and wire fraud
scheme to further and promote that scheme.
Lewis was sentenced on August 30, 1999 by United States District Court
Judge Thomas A. Higgins to serve seventy-two months in federal prison.
Lewis also was ordered to pay restitution totaling $12.5 million to DirecTV.
Lewis initially failed to surrender to serve his 72-month sentence on
November 1, 1999, as ordered by the District Court. Lewis was arrested
by United States Marshals outside a room at the Tiki motel in Pensacola,
Florida on November 23, 1999. He was returned by United States Marshals
to the Middle District of Tennessee. On January 5, 2000, Lewis was indicted
for failing to surrender to serve his original 72-month sentence. On March
13, 2000, Lewis pled guilty to that offense. On April 14, 2000, Lewis
was sentenced to serve an additional 12-month sentence.
Lewis presently is confined at the Federal Correctional Institution in
Memphis.
This case was investigated jointly by United States Secret Service Special
Agent Robert Jones and Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation
Division Special Agent Jo Lynch.
###
|