14 DAY TRIAL // Back in August 2012, the US Department of Justice announced the seizure of three domains involved in the distribution of pirated Android applications. The founder of the largest of these websites, Applanet, is now trying to raise money to fight back against the government.
Applanet was founded by a teenager named Aaron from Mississippi. He created the application market just before he turned 16.
Aaron’s intention was to create a website for sharing apps that were free and ones that didn’t violate any copyrights. However, as the site grew, it began being abused. It became impossible to completely monitor the service.
But according to Aaron’s supporters, the government doesn’t care about these things, and has made the teen the target of a criminal investigation.
A group calling itself “Friends of Aaron” has contacted Softpedia and other publications because they want the world to hear the other side of the story, not just the one of the DOJ.
An Indiegogo campaign has been launched in an effort to raise money for Aaron’s defense.
The FBI raided Aaron’s home on August 21, 2012. They seized everything that had a power cord or a battery, trashing his house in the process. After that, they seized his website.
His possessions were never returned. However, one year after the raid on his house, Aaron was informed that he had become the subject of a federal criminal investigation.
“The government is getting involved in what should be, at very worst, a civil lawsuit against Aaron, not a criminal prosecution. But no, the big government is going after Aaron as a favor to the corporations which claim to be the real ‘victims’ of websites like Applanet,” Aaron’s supporters wrote on the Indiegogo campaign page.
“See, when corporations fight other corporations over real or guessed wrongs, it’s very complicated and very expensive. Armies of civil lawyers go into a courtroom, and when it’s finally over, one company gives the other company – and the lawyers – lots of money.”
They believe corporations don’t bother suing youths because they don’t have much money. Instead, civil lawsuits are filed against them and they’re dragged into criminal courtrooms where their freedom could be taken away.
“And, even if they are ultimately found innocent, they will have spent a ton of time and money (and earned a ton of debt at a young age) defending themselves and their freedom,” they noted.
Check out the Indiegogo campaign launched by Friends of Aaron.