A man has received a 16-month prison sentence and has been ordered to pay over £10,000 after he pleaded guilty to five offences at Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates Court.

In 2019 the National Trading Standards Investigation Team (Wales) led a project, partnered with FACT, to investigate TV boxes available for sale online by Wales-based traders.

As part of the investigation it was found that Carl Bertram Ruddock had bought and reprogrammed set-top boxes and Amazon Firesticks to illegally access paid-for content such as Sky and BT Sport, without paying the required subscription. He sold these items through his business – Rdock Shop – and via his Facebook account. His activities presented a significant potential loss to content providers.

In April 2019 Ruddock pleaded guilty to five offences at Merthyr Tydfil Magistrates Court. He was sentenced to a total of 16 months’ imprisonment. At the Proceeds of Crime Act hearing in November 2019 Ruddock was ordered to pay available assets of £10,188.04. He was given six months to pay, with a penalty of six months’ imprisonment for non-payment.