WESTERN BUREAU

A St. James videographer who illegally recorded and sold copies of the 2004 staging of Rebel Salute, was convicted of breaches of the Copyright Act in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday.

Thirty-five year-old Merton McKenzie of Norwood Drive in Montego Bay was fined $420,000 and sentenced to one year imprisonment, suspended for two years.

Similar charges against his wife, Debra McKenzie, was dismissed by Resident Magistrate Winsome Henry. Attorney-at-law Garth McBean obtained a fiat to prosecute the matter.

"For me, personally, I don't want any of my black brothers and sisters to go to prison, but I think a message has to be sent to let people know that they can't just take people's property and sell it without getting their permission or even paying them for it," said Patrick 'Tony Rebel' Barrett, organiser of Rebel Salute after the conviction.

"Whether I am satisfied or dissatisfied is neither here nor there. I just hope that he can deal with the sentence and that he, and anybody else out there who is doing this sort of thing, will not do it again."

McKenzie, who holds a finance degree, was slapped with six counts of breaches of the Copyright Act after three digital video discs, copies of Rebel Salute, three bootleg compact discs and 24 reproduced movies were recovered at his home during a police raid on February 22, 2004.

The lawmen also seized blank CDs, computers, 35 pieces of DVD and CD recording devices, which will be transferred to the Crown.

When the McKenzies were first arraigned in court, they faced 21 counts and initially pleaded not guilty to the charges in March 2004. After more than five trial dates, the husband took full responsibility and changed his plea.