Nintendo Hacker Gary Bowser Says Conviction Was “A Blessing”

Gary Bowser, the infamous figure who was convicted for his role with Team Xecuter in facilitating piracy of Nintendo games, has recently spoken to UNILAD to state that he sees his arrest and subsequent conviction as “a blessing”.

Alongside serving 14 of his 30-month prison sentence, Bowser was required to pay $10 million directly to Nintendo in restitution in addition to a $4.5 million fine. As such, he struck a deal with Nintendo in which 20-30% of his surplus income would go to the company, meaning that he will likely be in significant debt for many years to come.

Bowser told UNILAD that he has managed to alleviate his situation somewhat by leveraging money he had saved while in prison, disability payments for his medical condition, and donations offered via a GoFundMe page. He states that despite all this, “it’s still going to be tough food-wise”.

Nevertheless, he says that he views his conviction as a blessing, and has used his time in prison to reflect on his life and actions:

“Life is path of choices, I made the wrong one, that is for sure, but in some ways I look at result now, after all this happened, as a blessing.

“Time in jail helped me take a deep hard look at my life, resolve some personal issues on why I was drinking daily, and now I’m back in Canada I have been able to reconnect with those that truly care and loved me as friend and human being. That’s been very helpful in getting my life restarted, so I am now back on track and looking forward to having many more decades of living.

“My health and wellbeing is my focus in my life now, and having those that truly care close to me. No more stupid sh*t.”

Court documents detailing the sentencing of Bowser revealed that US district judge Robert Lasnik discussed how the case would serve as a means to ‘send a message’ to those who wish to carry out similar crimes.