The Federal Communications Commission has taken swift action against three pirate radio operators in Miami, Fla., issuing more than $800,000 worth of fines today. The FCC’s hunt to weed out illicit operations, however, is not over.
On Thursday, the commission also proposed fines, totaling $1 million, against three more alleged pirate radio operators in New Jersey and New York.
Under the 2020 Preventing Illegal Radio Abuse Through Enforcement Act, or PIRATE Act, the FCC was granted additional authority to enact higher penalties against pirate radio broadcasters. According to the FCC, this year, the inflation-adjusted maximum penalties for pirate broadcasting have increased to $119,555 per day, with a statutory maximum of approximately $2.4 million.
We’ll dive into the six cases below.
FCC Brings the Heat
On Sept. 26, the FCC imposed fines against three pirate radio operators in Miami, all of whom had received Notices of Apparent Liability (NALs) in January 2024. The FCC said none of the operators filed responses — as requested in the NAL — denying their involvement in alleged illicit operations.
First, the commission imposed a $358,665 fine against Cameron Brown for pirate radio broadcasting via an unauthorized radio station known as “The Plug.”
Second, the commission issued a $120,000 forfeiture against Abdias Datis, a.k.a. “DJ AJ 305,” for operating a station known as “Unique FM” on 91.7 MHz.
Finally, the FCC issued another $358,665 fine against Brindley Marshall for operating a station known as “Hot 97.7 FM” on 97.7 MHz.
“Pirate radio operations pose public safety risks, including causing harmful interference to licensed radio stations which transmit public safety emergency alert messages,” said the FCC in its notice. Operating an unauthorized, or pirate, radio station is illegal under the Communications Act of 1934.
Earlier this year, the FCC proposed the maximum allowable penalty, about $2.4 million, on a person it described as “one of the longest-operating [radio] pirates in the Miami area.” The commission said Fabrice Polynice allegedly operated a pirate station known as “Touché Douce” over 22 days in 2023.
In addition to tougher fines on violators, the PIRATE Act also requires the FCC to conduct periodic enforcement sweeps of areas that are known or suspected to have pirate radio activity. In addition to south Florida, the NYC metropolitan area, for example, is notorious for pirate operators.
More to Come
As part of the 2024 NYC-area pirate radio sweep, the FCC has also proposed new fines, totaling $1 million, against three suspected pirate radio operators in New Jersey and New York.
The FCC has proposed a fine of $920,000 against Masner Beauplan for allegedly operating an unauthorized radio station known as “Radio Leve Kanpe” on 91.7 MHz in Irvington and Maplewood, N.J., from November 2023 to January 2024.
The second proposed penalty is $40,000 against Raul Alcantara for allegedly operating a station known as “Sabor FM” on 88.9 MHz in the Bronx, N.Y., from November 2023 to January 2024.
Finally, the commission has proposed another $40,000 penalty, this time against Wilner Baptiste, for operating a station known as “M-One Radio Live” or “M-One Live Radio” on 94.1 MHz in Spring Valley, N.Y., from January 2024 to June 2024.
In each of these cases, the people named have 30 days to respond to and counter the allegations outlined in the NAL before the FCC confirms a forfeiture.
