The man detained in Daugavpils has provided illegal television to 13 thousand households in a vast territory of Latvia.
On March 21, police officers detained a man born in 1976 who was providing unlicensed television services for the region of Rīga for a fee for about 15 years. A large number of TV signal reception and distribution facilities were removed during the search.
It has been established that the person has provided television services through a Russian-registered broadcaster – the limited-liability company “NTV – Plus”, as well as the closed company “National Satellite Commercial”, whose television services are provided using the television content of the “Trikolor” brand, including among others from the banned list of programs in Latvia such as “MIR 24”, “RTVi”, “RBK”, “ROSSIE RTR”, “Rossija24”, “TV Centr International”.
Meanwhile, on March 23 , the Economic Crimes Administration and the Cybercrime Combating Administrations conducted a series of investigation activities in Daugavpils and Rīga, including six searches, which resulted in the discovery and removal of devices transmitting illegal television, documentation, media, and other material evidence. A man born in 1988 has been detained. Information has been obtained that the person has long provided illegal television services to more than 13 thousand households.
The first paragraph of Article 148 of the Criminal Law provides for a possible period of imprisonment of up to two years for such crimes.
Similarly, at the end of March, the Internal Security Bureau detained a police officer on suspicion of distributing illegal TV channels in Latvia.
