Chinese National Pleads Guilty to Software Piracy Scheme

https://www.justice.gov/usao-wdmo/pr/chinese-national-pleads-guilty-software-piracy-scheme

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Western District of Missouri

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Chinese National Pleads Guilty to Software Piracy Scheme

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tom Larson, Acting United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Chinese national pleaded guilty in federal court today to his role in an international, multi-million dollar software piracy scheme. Wen Tao Liu, also known as Orland Liu, 37, a citizen of the People’s Republic of China, pleaded guilty before U.S. Chief District Judge Greg Kays to one count of conspiracy and one count of trafficking in counterfeit labels. Liu was arrested on June 15, 2016, at Dallas Fort Worth International airport on an American Airlines flight during his return flight to China, and remains in federal custody.
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Liu, doing business as Haitu International Group Co. Limited (an entity based in Hong Kong), participated in a conspiracy with Casey Lee Ross of Kansas City, Mo. (doing business as Software Slashers), David Reece of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and others from March 10, 2010, to Feb. 2, 2015, to commit the offenses of unauthorized solicitation of access devices, trafficking in counterfeit goods and smuggling goods into the United States. Liu obtained and sold counterfeit, illicit, and/or unauthorized Microsoft software, software products and related components, including unauthorized product key codes and counterfeit product key cards, causing the Microsoft Corporation millions of dollars in losses. (Product key codes are used to obtain full access to unlocked, licensed versions of various copyrighted software programs.)

At the time of his arrest, Liu possessed approximately 318,213 unauthorized Microsoft product key codes, which he had obtained from illicit sources and sold to others. Those product key codes, worth approximately $250 each, constitutes a loss of approximately $79,553,250 to Microsoft. Liu also admitted that he sold 500 counterfeit Microsoft Office “Lenovo” product key cards to an undercover law enforcement agent for $35,000.
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