Adventures of the 'Wolverine' Leaker

On March 31, someone posted a "work print" — an unfinished copy — of the film "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" on a Web site. It was a full month before the movie, starring Hugh Jackman as the famous mutant, was to open in theaters. Hollywood analysts called the leak unprecedented and speculated whether its free, albeit brief, availability to the public — and the unkind buzz that followed — would dampen its box office draw. Mr. Jackman himself was said by the studio to be "heartbroken." "The source of the initial leak and any subsequent postings will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," the studio behind the movie, 20th Century Fox, said the day it appeared online. Eight months later, on Dec. 16, Gilberto Sanchez was awakened by a knock at 6 a.m., and opened the door to F.B.I. agents, who placed him under arrest. He was charged with violation of copyright law, arraigned in federal court in Manhattan and allowed to return home. He faces the possibility of prison time, maybe in California, where his indictment originated.