JERUSALEM (AP) – An aspiring singer who auditioned for Israel’s top TV song competition was sentenced Thursday to 14 months in prison after he was convicted of stealing and selling unreleased songs by international pop star Madonna.
Adi Lederman was arrested earlier this year and after confessing, reached a plea deal on charges that he hacked into the computers of people linked to Madonna and then stole and sold her songs.
Lederman, a Tel Aviv resident in his late 30s, was also fined 15,000 shekels, or about 3,900 dollars.
The court ruled that the “appropriate” sentence should serve as a deterrent for future hacking incidents.
Songs from Madonna’s latest album “Rebel Heart” were leaked online late last year. At the time, she urged her fans not to listen to the stolen copies that had surfaced, writing on Instagram: “I have been violated as a human and an artist.” She later released six songs, calling it an “early Christmas gift” for fans.