Man Arrested For Posting Guns N' Roses Album Online

By Eriq Gardner

The Olympics are over, but the fight over Chinese Democracy has just begun.

The FBI has arrested Kevin Cogill, a resident of Culver City, after he admitted to uploading nine songs from Guns N' Roses unreleased album "Chinese Democracy." Cogill faces a maximum sentence of three years in federal prison if convicted of copyright infringement, or five years if it's proven that he did it for financial gain.

Cogill can thank his lucky rock stars that a judge won't be able to sentence him to a prison term equal to the time it will take Axl Rose to release this long-awaited album.

Howard Rubin, a partner at Goetz & Fitzpatrick, tells Wired News that Cogill probably won't see significant jail time, but may be on the hook for significant statutory damages. Of course, the band's litigation pursuits may be complicated by its stubborn refusal to release the album. "They'll have their own public relations issues as to whether they're going to start an action here," says Rubin.