A former employee of the chart-topping rapper Eminem is being accused of some very shady behavior.

Joseph Strange, who worked for the rapper born Marshall Mathers from approximately 2007 to 2021, has been charged with criminal infringement of a copyright and interstate transportation of stolen goods in connection with the alleged sale of some of his ex-boss’ unreleased music, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of Michigan announced Wednesday.

According to a criminal complaint, employees of Eminem’s music studio in Ferndale, Mich., alerted the FBI around Jan. 16 that they had discovered more than 25 of the rapper’s unreleased songs were circulating online. Neither Eminem nor Interscope Capitol Labels Group had consented to the release of the songs, and employees identified an image of a list of the songs as one taken directly from a studio hard drive, prosecutors say. Prosecutors also allege that several individuals who had purchased the music pointed the finger at Strange as the seller after being contacted by the FBI.

“Protecting intellectual property from thieves is critical in safeguarding the exclusive rights of creators and protecting their original work from reproduction and distribution by individuals who seek to profit from the creative output of others,” acting U.S. Attorney Julie Beck said.

The criminal infringement of a copyright charge brought against Strange carries a maximum of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. The interstate transportation of stolen goods charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Strange, 46, has engineering credits on every album and EP Eminem released from 2009’s Relapse to 2020’s Music to Be Murdered By.

Eminem’s longtime spokesperson, Dennis Dennehey, said in a statement provided to Entertainment Weekly, “The significant damage caused by a trusted employee to Eminem’s artistic legacy and creative integrity cannot be overstated, let alone the enormous financial losses incurred by the many creators and collaborators that deserve protection for their decades of work. We will continue to take any and all steps necessary to protect Eminem’s art and will stop at nothing to do so.”

An attorney for Strange, Wade Fink, told EW, “Mr. Strange is a family man who cares very much about the music industry. The U.S. Attorneys can write whatever they want in a complaint, sign it, and ship it out with a press release. Proving these things in a court of law, where it belongs, in front of the finest district judges in the country, is considerably more difficult.”

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A spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Strange is expected to appear on the criminal complaint in federal court in Detroit sometime next week.