Blogger arrested over leaked Guns N' Roses tracks
Last Updated: Thursday, August 28, 2008 | 11:29 AM ET
CBC News
Guns N' Roses frontman Axl Rose, seen here performing in Aug. 2002, has previously said that the long-awaited Chinese Democracy album is already complete. It has been 14 years since the band's last album. (Beth Keiser/Associated Press)U.S. federal authorities have arrested a Los Angeles-area blogger accused of posting leaked tracks from the forthcoming Guns N' Roses album online.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said its agents arrested 27-year-old Kevin Cogill, operator of the Antiquiet blog, on Wednesday morning on suspicion of violating federal copyright laws.
He appeared in court later Wednesday. A judge set his bail $10,000 US and ordered him to return to court for a preliminary hearing on Sept. 17.
Cogill posted nine tracks from the long-awaited Chinese Democracy album on his site in June, but removed them shortly afterward, according to an arrest affidavit.
The website received so many hits that it crashed. In subsequent posts, Cogill referred to being questioned by the F.B.I. and asked his blog readers to suggest a good lawyer.
A statement from a band spokesman said that "Guns N' Roses representatives have been made aware of the arrests and are leaving the matter to the authorities."
In the past, the group's eccentric frontman Axl Rose has said that Chinese Democracy is complete. Its release is expected this fall, about 14 years since the last Guns N' Roses album.
In July, video game developers Harmonix and MTV Games announced that Shacklers' Revenge, a track from Chinese Democracy, would debut on its much-anticipated title Rock Band 2 in September.
With files from the Associated Press
