United States v. Kah Choon Chay

Kah Choon Chay (defendant) was a Malaysian citizen residing in the United States. Chay bought newly released computer games and sent them to a contact in Malaysia for copying. The contact sent back game copies with counterfeit packaging and instructions that Chay would sell online. One of Chay’s former roommates turned over evidence of Chay’s operation to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and after conducting an undercover operation, FBI agents arrested Chay. Chay confessed and pled guilty to one count of trafficking in counterfeit documents and packaging for computer programs in interstate commerce. The plea agreement acknowledged Chay’s willingness to pay restitution to the victims. Because Chay and the U.S. government (plaintiff) could not agree on a figure, the court made the determination and required Chay to pay $49,941.02. Chay was sentenced under 1998 sentencing guidelines. The court set the restitution amount based on evidence presented by the government calculating Chay’s gross sales of pirated games. Specific amounts owed to each victim were calculated based on the number of each victim’s games that were sold and the amount Chay received from the sales. Chay objected to the restitution amount on several grounds. The district court rejected Chay’s arguments, and Chay appealed the decision to the Seventh Circuit. Chay argued that the restitution amount needed to be reconsidered because 1) the government failed to present victim-impact statements to the court, 2) the court failed to consider his financial condition before making a determination, and 3) the calculation did not account for Chay’s manufacturing and distribution costs incurred during the operation.