Counterfeit Nintendo games seller faces jail time

A man selling counterfeit Nintendo games in the UK has been found guilty of seven counts of fraud and sentenced to 32 months of jail time, Your Local Guardian reports.

In two years, Justin Success-Brooks, 41, sold thousands of Nintendo DS and DSi counterfeit cartridges, banking close to £600,000. Success-Brooks is estimated to have cost Nintendo £12 million in lost game profits. According to Your Local Guardian, the games were sold as bundles and fitted with microchips to bypass console security systems. Success-Brooks reportedly denied cease-and-desist letters and continued to launch new seller websites under different names.

Francesca Levett, the case's prosecuting lawyer, called Success-Brooks' actions "extensive and skillfully planned fraud."

"This was very much a proper operation," Levett said. "This is not like someone selling games at a market. Nintendo may be big enough to weather the storm but retailers are not."

Success-Brooks is expected to serve at least half of the 32 months sentenced.