Ireland Case No. 5313Possession of proceeds of crime (money laundering) · Co. Kildare
Ciaran Donovan jailed for 16 months over €900,000 linked to King Kong Media illegal TV streaming, Kildare
Ciaran Donovan (42), a married father of four from Ashfield, Kildare Town, Co Kildare, operated King Kong Media, an illegal TV streaming service that sold access codes to Sky Sports, BT Sports and other pay TV channels, with offending from January 2016 to March 2022. An investigation was started by Sky TV's anti-piracy unit, and Donovan's bail was revoked after the business was found to be still operating. He pleaded guilty to money laundering and proceeds of crime charges linked to more than €900,000 and was sent forward for sentencing on two further charges covering October 2021 to November 2023. On Wednesday, 31 July 2024, Judge Martina Baxter sentenced him at Naas Circuit Criminal Court, and the reports differ on the term: one gives one year and four months in prison, the other three years and four months with the final two years suspended.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In courtnot reported
- Verdictnot reported
- Sentenced31 Jul
2 reports
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- Ciaran Donovan (42), a married father of four from Ashfield, Kildare Town, Co Kildare, operated King Kong Media, an illegal TV streaming service.
- The service sold access codes for a yearly €70 subscription, giving thousands of users access to copyrighted Sky Sports, BT Sports and other pay TV channels.
- Where
- The case was heard at Naas Circuit Criminal Court in Co Kildare.
- When
- The first set of offending covered January 2016 to March 2022, and the customer numbers rose from 2,500 to 5,000 during that period.
- Investigation
- The case followed an investigation started by Sky TV's anti-piracy unit.
- Charges
- Donovan pleaded guilty to three charges of money laundering, which one report describes as possession of proceeds of crime under the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act 2010.
- Donovan pleaded guilty to possessing €470,511 that passed through bank accounts linked to King Kong Media, and later to two similar charges covering €239,989 and €191,009.
- Donovan was sent forward for sentencing on signed guilty pleas to two further money laundering charges covering October 2021 to November 2023.
- In court
- Donovan appeared before Judge Martina Baxter at Naas Circuit Criminal Court on Wednesday, 31 July 2024.
- Cause
- The judge said financial motivation was the key factor in Donovan's offending.
- Other details
- The judge said continued operation after the investigation began was an aggravating factor, and described the website as sophisticated and extensive and the offending as low to mid-range in seriousness.
- The loss was estimated at more than €2 million to Sky from the customers involved, and €4.38 million in lost revenue to pay TV operators overall.
- Donovan's bail was revoked after the business was found to be still operating, and he has 41 previous convictions.
- Sentence
- One report says Donovan was sentenced to one year and four months in prison, while the other says he received three years and four months with the final two years suspended.
- The judge imposed three years and four months for the earlier offending and two and a half years for the later charges, ordered them served concurrently, and suspended the final two years for 30 months under Probation Service supervision, crediting time already spent in custody.
31 statements extracted from the articles
- whatDonovan was convicted of laundering more than €900,000 from an illegal streaming subscription service. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThousands of users of the service had access to copyrighted Sky Sports, BT Sports and other subscription services. (irishtimes.com)
- what€470,511 passed through bank accounts linked to Donovan's operation. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe loss to Sky from the customers involved was estimated at more than €2 million. (irishtimes.com)
- whatDonovan was the operator of an illegal TV streaming service that sold access codes to pay TV channels. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe first set of offending covered January 2016 to March 2022. (irishtimes.com)
- causeThe judge said financial motivation was the key factor in Donovan's offending. (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationThe case followed an investigation initiated by Sky TV's anti-piracy unit. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeDonovan had pleaded guilty to three charges of money laundering linked to selling subscriptions to King Kong Media. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeDonovan was sent forward for sentencing on signed guilty pleas to two further money laundering charges covering October 2021 to November 2023. (irishtimes.com)
- chargeDonovan pleaded guilty to three charges of possessing the proceeds of crime under the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act 2010. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeDonovan pleaded guilty to possessing €470,511 that passed through bank accounts linked to King Kong Media between January 2016 and March 2022. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeDonovan later pleaded guilty to two similar charges relating to €239,989 and €191,009. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtDonovan appeared before Judge Martina Baxter at Naas Circuit Court on a Wednesday. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe sentence was handed down at Naas Circuit Criminal Court. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe article's lede says he was sentenced to one year and four months in prison. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceFor the earlier offending the judge imposed three years and four months. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceFor the later charges the judge imposed two and a half years. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceThe judge ordered the sentences served concurrently and suspended the final two years of the jail term. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceThe judge gave Donovan credit for time already spent in custody. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceDonovan was sentenced to three years and four months on the charges. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe final two years of the sentence were suspended for 30 months on conditions. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceDonovan must be under Probation Service supervision during the suspension period. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe judge said the sentence would take into account more than two months already spent in custody. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe judge said that continued operation of the service after an investigation began was an aggravating factor. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe judge said the website was sophisticated, extensive and catered for consumers. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe judge said the offending was in the low to mid-range of seriousness. (irishtimes.com)
- otherThe illegal service was estimated to have cost pay TV operators €4.38 million in lost revenue. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe number of customers rose from 2,500 to 5,000 during the offending. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherDonovan's bail was revoked after the business was found to be still operating. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherDonovan has 41 previous convictions. (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 31 Jul2024'Dodgy box' operator jailed for 16 months after caught with more than €900,000
Sentencing report for Ciaran Donovan at Naas Circuit Criminal Court. No existing case matches this sentencing.
convicted, Ciaran Donovan, 42, male, named, irish (judged from name)Ciaran Donovan - 31 Jul2024‘Dodgy box’ TV service operator jailed for 16 months
Sentencing of Ciaran Donovan at Naas Circuit Court. No matching existing case. The lede gives a sentence of one year and four months, while the body gives three years and four months with the final two years suspended.
convicted, Ciaran Donovan, 42, male, named, irish (judged from name)Ciaran Donovan