Madonna Phone Hacker Sentenced to 14 Months in Jail

The Israeli man who was indicted on four charges of cyber crimes in association with hacking into Madonna‘s songs and leaking Rebel Heart tracks before the record’s release has been sentenced to 14 months in jail. Adi Lederman accepted a plea bargain with a Tel Aviv Magistrate’s Court in forming his sentence on Thursday, according to The Jerusalem Post. The man was also fined NIS 15,000 (approximately US $4,000).

Lederman, who’d gained fame in 2012 with an audition for the Israeli analog to American Idol, was accused of leaking demos and in-progress versions of the singer’s tunes online in December 2014. Madonna reacted by releasing six songs from the LP and putting out the album earlier than she had intended.

The man was arrested in January, and the country’s authorities said they believed he had also hacked into the personal computers of other celebrities. “I am profoundly grateful to the FBI, the Israeli police investigators and anyone else who helped lead to the arrest of this hacker,” Madonna wrote on Facebook at the time. “Like any citizen, I have the right to privacy. This invasion into my life – creatively, professionally, and personally – remains a deeply devastating and hurtful experience, as it must be for all artists who are victims of this type of crime.”

Court documents showed that Lederman had hacked into the cloud accounts of three Madonna associates and her manager. The leak was traced back to 2012, when prosecutors claimed that Lederman had even stolen Madonna’s MDMA track “Give Me All Your Luvin’.” They accused Lederman of selling that track to another person who leaked it.

He was indicted in February on charges of computer trespassing, prohibited secret monitoring, copyright infringement and obstructing investigation.

Since the release of Rebel Heart, Madonna has released several videos for tracks off the LP. In “Ghosttown,” she dances with Terrence Howard in a post-apocalyptic world, and in “Bitch, I’m Madonna,” she navigates an insane party scene featuring Beyoncé, Kanye West and Nicki Minaj, among others.