'Wolverine' pirate gets a year in prison

Back in 2009, an unfinished print of ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ found its way online a month before it was released, and now the pirate who uploaded it has gone to prison for a year.

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Forty-nine-year-old Gilberto Sanchez, from New York, was handed the stiff sentence after he pleaded guilty in March to one count of uploading a copyrighted work being prepared for commercial distribution. He’ll also have numerous computer restrictions and a year of supervised release after that.

Sanchez claims he bought the film out on the street in the Bronx, and then uploaded it to a file-sharing site. The original source of the leak hasn’t been caught yet.

According to reports, more than a million people illegally downloaded the film prior to it's release.

Despite the leak, which star Hugh Jackman described as "heartbreaking", the film grossed £238 million at the worldwide box office, and a further £76 million on DVD.

Once the sentence was passed, US attorney Andre Birotte Jr released this statement:

"The federal prison sentence handed down in this case sends a strong message of deterrence to would-be Internet pirates. The Justice Department will pursue and prosecute persons who seek to steal the intellectual property of this nation."

Entertainment Weekly reports that Sanchez has a prior conviction for a similar offence.

Do you think the sentence was harsh, or did Sanchez get what he deserved? Let us know your thoughts below.