US Seeking 5-Year Sentence For Nintendo Hacker Gary Bowser
The US attorney is asking for a 5-year sentence against Gary Bowser, the hacker who pled guilty to creating and distributing mod chips that allowed people to hack Nintendo consoles in order to play pirated software.
Gary Bowser was arrested in 2020 as part of a sting against the hacker group known as Team Xecuter. The group made tens of millions of dollars mass-producing mod chips for various Nintendo game consoles but especially the Nintendo Switch, which is Nintendo's best-selling home console system.
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The appropriately named Bowser pled guilty to two counts of trafficking in circumvention devices and conspiracy to circumvent technological measures. Bowser agreed to a $4.5 million fine, but the judge warned Bowser that he'd likely still face jail time.
That jail time is currently being deliberated. Eurogamer obtained court documents from the US Attorney and Bowser's defense, with the former asking for five years plus three years probation while the latter is asking for just 19 months.
The US government argues the sentence is appropriate to "the nature and circumstances of the offense, the history and characteristics of the defendant, and the need for the sentence to reflect the seriousness of the offense, to promote respect for the law, and to provide just punishment."
The US Attorney also states the "size and breadth of the Team Xecuter conspiracy" warrants a tougher sentence.
Bowser's defense argues that five years is overly harsh and that the United States government is trying to set an example of Bowser because of the media attention the case is garnering and because Bowser was the only Team Xecuter member that was caught. The
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