Fredrik Neij, one of the founders of The Pirate Bay, was arrested last year. He had been planning on spending his time in prison playing video games, but his request to have a NES put in his cell has been knocked back.
As Expressen reports (via TorrentFreak), Neij had asked for a retro system so that he could have something to do while he serves a stint for copyright infringement. Prison authorities said no, though, when they took a look at a NES and found that it violated strict rules they have about items being brought into a cell.
While it’s usually fine for prisoners in Sweden to have access to a console (as it is in some other countries), the NES has a problem in that the prison says it can’t be opened up to be checked for contraband without “destroying” the sytem.
Neij is appealing, on the grounds that a NES can be opened up if you…have a screwdriver.
Comments
36 responses to “Pirate Bay Co-Founder Not Allowed To Play NES In Prison”
It can be opened and not broken in my opinion… but your in prison for a reason even if its a shitty reason
*you’re*
Off to Grammar Gaol for you!
I was first like “Who the hell?” then…. then i saw it was “GrammarCop”
We put people in prison to rehabilitate them, not to break them and release them as shittier people.
But that means little when other prisoners have access to consoles if they wish
i agree, its dumb. I’m just saying x3
How does opening it destroy it any more than a modern console?
Not sure if it’s the same case but I have seen some electronics companies make versions of their products in a see through plastic specifically for prisons.
Nintendo are jerks when it comes to being able to open their consoles up. From memory the NES has weird heads on the screws that require a special screw driver. It’s a real pain in the butt when all you need to do is open your GameBoy up to clean it.
The solution would be to get someone to open the NES up outside and then just not put the screws back in. Wrap it with tape or replace the screws with regular ones. Granted that’s a lot of work if they have to do it for every cart.
Yeah, they are 3-pronged – it’s like a little Mercedes badge. I got one of the internet though to fix my Nephew’s DS. Wasn’t particularly difficult though.
Actually, pretty sure the NES was just done with regular screws. I remember my Dad opening ours up when I was little because of the whole connector issue making it not work properly. And just checked now, it’s got regular screws in it. The SNES though, that one’s got their security screws on it (bulbous top with six cylindrical notches taken out from the edge), while the tri-wings were on the handhelds IIRC. Also the GCN controllers.
Just checked, normal phillips head screws.
Yeah. Looks like mine is too. Could just be a regional thing for us, but even with the different region I’d expect the Swedish NES to be the same.
I guess they just mean it’s easy to cram things inside it and you can’t fully check it without either operating on it with tools or destroying it. In retrospect I did hide things in my NES all the time…
heh
All I can think of with this is…. “The files are in the computer!” from Zoolander
He should have asked for an Xbox 360, because either way……………………………RROD.
I bet this guy is praying to avoid a red ring of death regardless of having an xbox or not…
Promote this man.
Could get a PS3 they had a even bigger slew of faults ylod, drive defection, overheating, hard drive corruption and lack of non Japanese exclusives take your pick
Hahahhahaha. Bumholes.
they are in prison… deal with it. you dont need an NES.
Mind you, punishment could be giving him an NES with the 10 worst rated games only, a sketchy TV adapter that is always needing to be pressed and prodded to get a stable picture, and no pen and paper to jot down the ‘save codes’ to resume a game >:)
Prison shouldn’t be about punishment it should be about reform. The most succesful prison systems are over in europe and they allow the prisoners to learn and live in a micro community inside the prison.
Give him an NES with only LJN games lol
idiot.
very constructive comment you are inputting to the conversation there 🙂 are you sure you aren’t living your own words?
Amen to that, this freaking baffles me why they are allowed stuff like this in the first place, break law and get stuck in a room with a console?!!?? eh….
You are carrying on as if he is getting a sega, it’s just a NES!
Hey man, he’s in there for copyright infringement, it’s not like he killed someone.
Let the punishment fit the crime a little
Give him an N64 with Superman 64 as the only game. Bloke will be begging for corporal punishment within a week.
Or he will rise above and become a Superman 64 legend.
But… But… That’s using LOGIC! No one uses LOGIC in this day and age.
XRAY IT!!!!
The man deserves a Nobel Prize. Way more deserving than that suffering fettish bitch Mother Teresa
Maybe they’re worried they’ll void the warranty 😛
Give him an Atari with E.T.