Nintendo Piracy Case: Bowser Has Been Sentenced to Prison for 40 Months

Nintendo Piracy

In an update provided by Nintendo, it has been revealed that their case against one of Team-Xecuter’s leaders, Gary W. Bowser, has come to a close with the court sentencing Bowser 40 months in prison. And yes, it is ironic that his name is Bowser.

In a press release sent out by the company, Nintendo confirmed that Gary W. Bowser would be spending 40 months, or three years and four months, in prison as part of his punishment for taking part in the distribution of unauthorized hardware/software.

Today, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington imposed a 40-month sentence upon Gary W. Bowser, one of the leaders of the Team Xecuter criminal enterprise, which created and sold console-hacking software and devices used to play pirated Nintendo Switch games.

Nintendo appreciates the hard work and tireless efforts of federal prosecutors and law enforcement agencies to curb illegal activities on a global scale that cause serious harm to Nintendo and the video game industry. In particular, Nintendo would like to thank the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) of the Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Computer Crime & Intellectual Property Section and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs for their significant contribution and assistance.

Back in October, Bowser and his attorneys filed a plea agreement, which saw Bowser plead guilty on two counts of “conspiracy to circumvent technological measures and to traffic in circumvention devices.” In more layman terms, he plead guilty to the distribution of software which enabled piracy on the Nintendo Switch, despite what their marketing stated.

For some time now, Nintendo has been cracking down on piracy as they have over the years taken down a number of rom sites. Team-Xecutor is the latest to face action from them as they sellers of hardware used to exploit the Nintendo Switch.

Top Games and Upcoming Releases