Porn Spamming Duo Sentenced to 5-Plus Years

PHOENIX — Two pornography spammers convicted in June of conspiracy, money laundering, fraud and transportation of obscene materials face more than five years prison time and major fines.

Jeffrey Kilbride of Venice, Calif., was sentenced last week to six-and-a-half years and James Schaffer of Paradise Valley, Ariz., was sentenced to 5 ¼ years in prison. Both were fined $100,000 and forced to hand over $1.1 million of their $2 million in spam profit.

Both reportedly also had to pay America Online $77,500 after the conglomerate claimed to have had 1.5 million customers complain about spam.

Adult industry attorney Gary Kaufman of Los Angeles-based the Kaufman Law Group — who also represents adult social networking site SexSearch.com — told XBIZ that he has been hired by Schaffer to appeal his conviction.

Kaufman said he believes the conviction is unwarranted and the sentence is excessive.

"We believe that the government is going to use the sentence imposed in this case as a hammer to induce future indictees to cop a plea early on," Kaufman said. "We believe that there are unique and novel issues for the appellate court to address. We are hopeful that we will obtain a reversal on appeal.”

Kilbride has hired adult industry attorney Gregory Piccionelli of Piccionelli & Sarno to handle his appeal. Piccionelli said that this case should act as an industry wakeup call.

“For those in the business that think that the government would not sentence people to jail for the distribution of non-child pornographic material, they need look no further than this case to see that the government is serious about going after this business," Piccionelli said. "Unfortunately Schaffer and Kilbride may turn out to be the poster children for that vendetta."

The two men began their spamming operation in 2003, embedding hardcore pornography in mass emails, making it available and visible to anyone who opened the messages. When the CAN-SPAM act became law a year later, the two used international servers and mismatching "reply to" and "from" addresses, making it difficult to trace the spam emails.

The Justice Department said Kilbride and Schaffer registered their domains under the name of a "fictitious employee at a shell corporation" and that the two had set up in the Republic of Mauritius, another serious CAN-SPAM violation. They also used overseas banks to launder and hide money from the IRS.

Kilbride and Schaffer initially were charged in 2005. Schaffer also was charged with 2257 violations, after officials discovered he had not maintained appropriate records for the adult performers featured on Boobs.com, CumShots.com and FaceSat.com, three websites he operated overseas through The Compliance Company and Ganymede Marketing.

Related:  

Copyright © 2024 Adnet Media. All Rights Reserved. XBIZ is a trademark of Adnet Media.
Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission is prohibited.

More News

MojoHost Releases Statement on the Future of Adult

In the wake of Tuesday's election and amid concerns about the possible ramifications for the adult industry, MojoHost President Brad Mitchell has releases a statement addressing Project 2025 and the future of the industy.

Adult Web Hosting Service 'Midnight-Host' Launches

Midnight-Host, a new web hosting service designed specifically for adult websites, has launched.

ASN Lifestyle Magazine Joins Pineapple Support as Media Sponsor

ASN Lifestyle Magazine has joined the ranks of over 60 adult businesses and organizations committing funds and resources to Pineapple Support, partnering with the organization as a media sponsor.

Adult Industry Reacts to Trump Victory

On Tuesday, former President Donald Trump was reelected, defeating Vice President Kamala Harris to reclaim the office he lost four years ago.

Fetisfy Online Fetish Marketplace Launches

Fetisfy.com, an online marketplace for users to sell fetish items, has launched.

Pineapple Support Launches 'Spill the Tea, Colombia' Community Support Event Series

Pineapple Support has launched "Spill the Tea, Colombia," a monthly, in-person community support event for adult industry professionals.

Streamster Launches 'Tip2Peep' Camera-Switching Feature

Live-streaming software provider Streamster has launched Tip2Peep, a new feature that allows viewers to switch between multiple webcam viewing angles by tipping the creator.

Tyler Wu Guests on Chaturbate's 'Sex Tales' Podcast

Tyler Wu is the latest guest on Chaturbate’s “Sex Tales” podcast, hosted by Melissa Stratton and Vanniall on the company’s “Camming Life” YouTube channel.

Fleshy to Launch Interactive Cam Site 'Eromote'

Male pleasure brand Fleshy has announced that it will launch an interactive, bidirectional cam site next month called Eromote.

XBIZ LA Show Introduces New 'Crib Crawl' Feature

XBIZ is pleased to announce that the 2025 edition of its flagship conference, the XBIZ Show, will debut a brand-new feature: Crib Crawl, offering attendees the chance to meet and greet representatives from leading brands and organizations in dedicated suites at the host venue.

Show More