A dad made a huge profit by selling dodgy fire sticks on the internet in a desperate bid to fund his gambling dependency.

Kevin O’Donnell, from Altcross Road in Croxteth, Liverpool, sold modified fire sticks for illegal streaming of subscription-based content from September 2020 to March 2023. The Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT) discovered him after unravelling information about devices providing unauthorised access to premium sports broadcasts, TV shows and movies owned by Sky and BT.

On May 3 2022, FACT initiated an investigation into a Facebook profile dubbed “Kev O’James”, promoting the sale of subscription packages, for upwards of £85 on Amazon fire sticks or on remote smart devices. The profile carried the boast: “Don’t go with amateurs who have been selling for a few months. Come with us, we have been selling for many years”.

Turns out, O’Donnell’s personal account was linked with this Facebook account, and both profiles were managed by him. FACT officers then instigated a test purchase from the O’James profile, sending £40 to a PayPal address for a year’s subscription package. A further investigation into the transaction confirmed that the illicit streaming service granted customers access to Sky and BT content, reports the Liverpool Echo.

During the half-year period between February and August 2022, FACT discovered 574 transactions had flooded into the PayPal account, totalling a hefty £136k. A subsequent check-up in July 2023 revealed that both Facebook accounts were still active and continued to endorse the sale of the dodgy fire sticks.

On July 4 2023, O’Donnell, aged 41, was arrested admitting “sole responsibility for the offences”. He appeared at Liverpool Crown Court on June 4, pleading guilty to supplying articles for fraud use and offering a service designed to evade technological measures.

Prosecutor Kevin Liston said: “Quantification of the loss is difficult and is based on average. Sky estimate that, based on your average subscription cost in the period that the offences were taking place, the loss could have ranged as high as £371,000. BT, using a similar approach, estimate the losses could have been as high as £471,000. Significant losses were potentially caused by the venture.”

Defence lawyer, Kyra Badman said: “Right from the outset the defendant accepted his involvement. His involvement is not quite as sophisticated as it might seem. He was purchasing fire sticks for £40 and making a little profit on top of that, and that’s how the enterprise started.

“It’s clearly accepted that he was motivated by financial gain, not in respect of any lavish lifestyle, but driven by his addictions at the time: alcohol, but primarily a significant gambling addiction. These addictions were driven by an emotional response to what was happening in his life at the time.

“His father passed away in September 2022 having suffered with cancer for two years. The defendant was extremely close with his father, he worked with him every day of his life for 20 years, and the loss of his father had a significant effect on him. That meant he was more reliant on measures he felt helped him, alcohol and the escape of gambling.” She added O’Donnell was the main breadwinner for his disabled five year old son.

The judge, Miss Recorder Michelle Brown, said: “This was offending that took place over a sustained period of time, three years. Your offending involved large sums of money, not only in terms of your potential gain, but in terms of the potential loss caused to the companies involved.”

She accepted O’Donnell had not understood the seriousness of his crimes, his personal mitigation, and a probation report which placed him at low risk of reoffending in future. She sentenced him to a total of two years in prison, suspended for two years.