Sharebeast

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

EFOIA Request

I was seeking the release of all files related to the Historic 'Sharebeast' case as highlighted by the quoted press release from the Department of Justice.

Owner of Sharebeast.com sentenced for copyright infringement

ATLANTA - Artur Sargsyan has been sentenced for the crime of criminal copyright infringement for private financial gain while operating a massive file-sharing infrastructure that distributed approximately 1 billion copies of copyrighted musical works through Internet downloads. Sargsyan’s file-sharing websites, which contained numerous pop-up advertisements, generated significant profit for him when visitors accessed the websites to illegally download copyrighted works.

“Sargsyan operated one of the most successful illegal music sharing websites on the Internet,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “His reproduction of copyrighted musical works were made available only to generate undeserved profits for himself. The incredible work done by our law enforcement partners and prosecutors in light of the complexity of Sargsyan’s operation demonstrates that we will employ all of our resources to stop this kind of theft.”

“Mr. Sargsyan was warned several times that he was violating the law by illegally sharing copyrighted works, but chose to ignore those warnings,” said David J. LaValley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “His sentence sends a message that no matter how complex the operation, the FBI, its federal partners and law enforcement partners around the globe will go to every length to protect the property of hard working artists and the companies that produce their art.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: Artur Sargsyan owned and operated a number of websites including Sharebeast.com, Newjams.net, and Albumjams.com. From at least 2012 through 2015, Sargsyan illegally distributed and reproduced copyrighted works through Sharebeast.com. Using a network of websites that he owned and operated, including Newjams.net and Albumjams.com, Sargsyan created links to a wide swath of copyright-protected music that was stored on Sharebeast.com. Sharebeast illegally stored and distributed works from scores of artists, including Bruno Mars, Linkin Park, Pitbull, Pharrell Williams, Gwen Stefani, Maroon 5, Ariana Grande, Destiny’s Child, Ciara, Katy Perry, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber. Meanwhile, Sargsyan profited from the distribution of the copies of these copyrighted works.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (“RIAA”), Sharebeast.com was the largest online file-sharing website specializing in the reproduction and distribution of infringing copies of copyrighted music operating out of the United States. From 2012 to 2015, the RIAA sent Sargsyan over 100 e-mails notifying him that Sharebeast.com was illegally hosting and sharing copyright-infringing works. Sargsyan continued, however, to make the copyright-infringing files available for download, disregarding the many warnings that he received. The RIAA conservatively estimated the total monetary loss to its member companies at $6.3 billion.

Artur Sargsyan, 30, of Glendale, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr., to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $458,200. He was also ordered to forfeit $184,768.87. Sargsyan was convicted on these charges on September 1, 2017, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the FBI.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samir Kaushal and Kamal Ghali prosecuted the case. John Zacharia, formerly the Deputy Chief for Litigation for the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, previously prosecuted the case. The prosecution reflects a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), the Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s field offices in Atlanta, Denver, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Substantial assistance was provided by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and the Ministry of Security and Justice in the Netherlands.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

VAUGHN Index requested for any materials cited in exemption.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

William Fernandes

Freedom of Information Act Request #1500582-000

Can you please advise the production track for this request and the status in processing.

Thanks

Good day:

Can you provide any clarity to this status request response sent from the FBI?
Freedom of Information Act Request #1500582-000
3 year track for productions?

Response:

Thank you for contacting foipaquestions@fbi.gov. Please check the status of your FOIPA Request at http://vault.fbi.gov by clicking on “Check Status of Your FOI/PA Request” on the right side of the page, and follow the instructions below.

Check the Status of Your FOIPA Request
If your FOIPA Number is [1234567-0] please enter [1234567-000] into the system. If your FOIPA Number is [1234567-1] please enter [1234567-001] into the system. If you have any questions about the status of your FOIPA request, please e-mail foipaquestions@fbi.gov.

FIND STATUS OF FOIPA- Request statuses are updated weekly

Please enter the whole FOIPA number-Example: [1234567-000]

FOIPA:
Results will show the Request Number, Case Type and Process Description shown below:
FOIPA:
1234567-000

Case Type:
FOIPA

Process Description (Will display the current progress of the request)
The FBI’s FOIPA Program is searching the FBI’s indices for potentially responsive documents.
You may be contacted via formal letter for all fees and/or negotiation issues that may apply.

NOTE: Recent requests are entered into the FOIPA database in the order that they are received. Before you can check the status, you must have received correspondence assigning a FOIPA request number and the information transferred to the online database. Status information is updated weekly. If a request has been closed within the last six months the online database will display the following: The FOIPA number entered has been closed, and appropriate correspondence has been sent to the address on file.

Estimated Dates of Completion
Requests are processed in the order in which they are received through our multi-track processing system. Requests are divided into two primary tracks--simple (under 50 pages of potentially responsive documents) and complex (over 50 pages of potentially responsive documents). Complex requests are further divided into medium, large, and extra-large sub-tracks based upon request size. Simple track requests typically require the least amount of time to process. Currently, simple track cases average approximately 152 days from the date of receipt for processing. Our complex requests in the medium processing track are currently averaging 922 days, large processing track are currently averaging approximately 1,964 days, and extra-large processing track are currently averaging 2,360 days for processing.

Respectfully,

Public Information Officer
FBI - Information Management Division
200 Constitution Drive
Winchester, VA 22602
O: (540) 868-4593
E: foipaquestions@fbi.gov<mailto:foipaquestions@fbi.gov>

Do you have further questions about the FOI/PA process? Visit us at http://www.fbi.gov/foia

Please check the status of your request online at https://vault.fbi.gov/fdps-1/@@search-fdps Status updates are performed on a weekly basis.

Note: This is a non-emergency email address. If this is an emergency, please call 911 directly. If you need to report a tip for immediate action, please contact FBI Tips at http://tips.fbi.gov/ or reach out to your local field office.
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Original Request
o Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

EFOIA Request

I was seeking the release of all files related to the Historic 'Sharebeast' case as highlighted by the quoted press release from the Department of Justice.

Owner of Sharebeast.com sentenced for copyright infringement

ATLANTA - Artur Sargsyan has been sentenced for the crime of criminal copyright infringement for private financial gain while operating a massive file-sharing infrastructure that distributed approximately 1 billion copies of copyrighted musical works through Internet downloads. Sargsyan’s file-sharing websites, which contained numerous pop-up advertisements, generated significant profit for him when visitors accessed the websites to illegally download copyrighted works.

“Sargsyan operated one of the most successful illegal music sharing websites on the Internet,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “His reproduction of copyrighted musical works were made available only to generate undeserved profits for himself. The incredible work done by our law enforcement partners and prosecutors in light of the complexity of Sargsyan’s operation demonstrates that we will employ all of our resources to stop this kind of theft.”

“Mr. Sargsyan was warned several times that he was violating the law by illegally sharing copyrighted works, but chose to ignore those warnings,” said David J. LaValley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “His sentence sends a message that no matter how complex the operation, the FBI, its federal partners and law enforcement partners around the globe will go to every length to protect the property of hard working artists and the companies that produce their art.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: Artur Sargsyan owned and operated a number of websites including Sharebeast.com, Newjams.net, and Albumjams.com. From at least 2012 through 2015, Sargsyan illegally distributed and reproduced copyrighted works through Sharebeast.com. Using a network of websites that he owned and operated, including Newjams.net and Albumjams.com, Sargsyan created links to a wide swath of copyright-protected music that was stored on Sharebeast.com. Sharebeast illegally stored and distributed works from scores of artists, including Bruno Mars, Linkin Park, Pitbull, Pharrell Williams, Gwen Stefani, Maroon 5, Ariana Grande, Destiny’s Child, Ciara, Katy Perry, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber. Meanwhile, Sargsyan profited from the distribution of the copies of these copyrighted works.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (“RIAA”), Sharebeast.com was the largest online file-sharing website specializing in the reproduction and distribution of infringing copies of copyrighted music operating out of the United States. From 2012 to 2015, the RIAA sent Sargsyan over 100 e-mails notifying him that Sharebeast.com was illegally hosting and sharing copyright-infringing works. Sargsyan continued, however, to make the copyright-infringing files available for download, disregarding the many warnings that he received. The RIAA conservatively estimated the total monetary loss to its member companies at $6.3 billion.

Artur Sargsyan, 30, of Glendale, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr., to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $458,200. He was also ordered to forfeit $184,768.87. Sargsyan was convicted on these charges on September 1, 2017, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the FBI.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samir Kaushal and Kamal Ghali prosecuted the case. John Zacharia, formerly the Deputy Chief for Litigation for the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, previously prosecuted the case. The prosecution reflects a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), the Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s field offices in Atlanta, Denver, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Substantial assistance was provided by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and the Ministry of Security and Justice in the Netherlands.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

VAUGHN Index requested for any materials cited in exemption.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

William Fernandes
///////

Copy of related documents for request
Freedom of Information Act Request #1500582-000

Good day:
Can you confirm a referral request was received from the FBI related to this request? Agency isn't responding to status requests.

Best,
William

Original Request Shown Below

To Whom It May Concern:

Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act, I hereby request the following records:

EFOIA Request

I was seeking the release of all files related to the Historic 'Sharebeast' case as highlighted by the quoted press release from the Department of Justice.

Owner of Sharebeast.com sentenced for copyright infringement

ATLANTA - Artur Sargsyan has been sentenced for the crime of criminal copyright infringement for private financial gain while operating a massive file-sharing infrastructure that distributed approximately 1 billion copies of copyrighted musical works through Internet downloads. Sargsyan’s file-sharing websites, which contained numerous pop-up advertisements, generated significant profit for him when visitors accessed the websites to illegally download copyrighted works.

“Sargsyan operated one of the most successful illegal music sharing websites on the Internet,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “His reproduction of copyrighted musical works were made available only to generate undeserved profits for himself. The incredible work done by our law enforcement partners and prosecutors in light of the complexity of Sargsyan’s operation demonstrates that we will employ all of our resources to stop this kind of theft.”

“Mr. Sargsyan was warned several times that he was violating the law by illegally sharing copyrighted works, but chose to ignore those warnings,” said David J. LaValley, Special Agent in Charge of FBI Atlanta. “His sentence sends a message that no matter how complex the operation, the FBI, its federal partners and law enforcement partners around the globe will go to every length to protect the property of hard working artists and the companies that produce their art.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: Artur Sargsyan owned and operated a number of websites including Sharebeast.com, Newjams.net, and Albumjams.com. From at least 2012 through 2015, Sargsyan illegally distributed and reproduced copyrighted works through Sharebeast.com. Using a network of websites that he owned and operated, including Newjams.net and Albumjams.com, Sargsyan created links to a wide swath of copyright-protected music that was stored on Sharebeast.com. Sharebeast illegally stored and distributed works from scores of artists, including Bruno Mars, Linkin Park, Pitbull, Pharrell Williams, Gwen Stefani, Maroon 5, Ariana Grande, Destiny’s Child, Ciara, Katy Perry, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Kanye West, and Justin Bieber. Meanwhile, Sargsyan profited from the distribution of the copies of these copyrighted works.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (“RIAA”), Sharebeast.com was the largest online file-sharing website specializing in the reproduction and distribution of infringing copies of copyrighted music operating out of the United States. From 2012 to 2015, the RIAA sent Sargsyan over 100 e-mails notifying him that Sharebeast.com was illegally hosting and sharing copyright-infringing works. Sargsyan continued, however, to make the copyright-infringing files available for download, disregarding the many warnings that he received. The RIAA conservatively estimated the total monetary loss to its member companies at $6.3 billion.

Artur Sargsyan, 30, of Glendale, California, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten, Sr., to five years in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $458,200. He was also ordered to forfeit $184,768.87. Sargsyan was convicted on these charges on September 1, 2017, after he pleaded guilty.

This case was investigated by the FBI.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Samir Kaushal and Kamal Ghali prosecuted the case. John Zacharia, formerly the Deputy Chief for Litigation for the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section, previously prosecuted the case. The prosecution reflects a coordinated effort by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, the Department of Justice Criminal Division’s Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS), the Office of International Affairs, the FBI’s field offices in Atlanta, Denver, Chicago, and Los Angeles, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California. Substantial assistance was provided by the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and the Ministry of Security and Justice in the Netherlands.

For further information please contact the U.S. Attorney’s Public Affairs Office at USAGAN.PressEmails@usdoj.gov or (404) 581-6016. The Internet address for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia is http://www.justice.gov/usao-ndga.

VAUGHN Index requested for any materials cited in exemption.

The requested documents will be made available to the general public, and this request is not being made for commercial purposes.

In the event that there are fees, I would be grateful if you would inform me of the total charges in advance of fulfilling my request. I would prefer the request filled electronically, by e-mail attachment if available or CD-ROM if not.

Thank you in advance for your anticipated cooperation in this matter. I look forward to receiving your response to this request within 20 business days, as the statute requires.

Sincerely,

William Fernandes

I sent your reply to DOJ OIP.
They suggested I follow up with you again, as you are required to advise a production timeline.

Ground for Appeal
5 USC 552, 552a
Agency must use and produce documents in relation to any type of business entity and business vs personal would be review for disclosure based on third person. A Website doesn't have privacy act rights.
Agency has sent multiple follow up messages that are unclear as of 10/20/2021
Request has consulted with OIP.Compliance about request and was advised agency needs to provide a production timeline.