A COPYRIGHT pirate who masterminded a counterfeit DVD business netting £70,000 has been jailed.

David Smallbone, aged 40, of Vulcan Close, Padgate, was caged for eight months at Warrington Magistrates Court on Tuesday after he admitted running a large scale disc-copying factory.

A raid at his home uncovered the extent of his illegal enterprise - 12 CD burners, five computers, 2,364 mastercopy DVDs, 1,384 copied computer games, 301 videos as well as 4,529 blank discs.

Almost £15,000 in cash was also recovered.

Prosecuting solicitor John Holmes, acting on behalf of Warrington Borough Council, said the bogus trader had the facilities to produce 12 pirated discs at the same time.

The resulting counterfeit ware was then sold on at a computer fair in Trafford and around his neighbourhood.

The counterfeiter, who was claiming benefits at the time of his three-year scam, has also been prosecuted by the Department of Work and Pensions for the offences.

Despite claiming he was unemployed, Smallbone bought a £21,000 Ford Focus, which he has now surrendered to trading standards officers, along with £10,000 cash.

Peter Astley, head of Warrington trading standards, said: "Smallbone is a typical type of counterfeiter.

"This result is significant because it is the first time we have confiscated a large amount of assets.

"And other counterfeiters should be aware that they not only face the risk of a serious custodial sentence but their assets will be taken as well.

"Counterfeiting is known as the crime of the 21st century and accounts for nine per cent of world trade."

The father of two was charged with 11 offences of copyright piracy when he was arrested in August 2004.

"One concern we have is that counterfeiters will not only sell DVDs but will move on to other forms of piracy such as counterfeit cigarettes and pharmaceutical goods which also damage health," added Mr Astley, who is a member of the national strategy group for counterfeit crime.

Despite the extensive collection of piracy tools discovered, Smallbone's solicitor Dan Gaskell said it was uncertain how much money he had made.

He said: "He has had to come to terms with the fact he is going to lose a substantial amount of money and property."