SEATTLE -- Colton Harris-Moore, who gained notoriety as a teenager nearly a decade ago as "The Barefoot Bandit" for his daring thefts -- is asking a judge for an early release from his three-year probation sentence.

Harris-Moore served 6.5 years in prison and currently has five months left on this three-year probation sentence that followed his release. But he is now asking the judge that sentenced him to end his probation early so he can better pursue a career in public and motivational speaking.

Harris-Moore says the current probation travel restrictions effectively keep him limited to staying in Western Washington, causing him to turn down numerous speaking opportunities in other states and countries . He estimated he's lost about $600,000 in potential earnings over the probationary period -- money that could be used to help pay back his victims quicker.

In a heart-felt three-page letter submitted to Judge Richard A. Jones, Harris-Moore describes how he has turned over a new leaf and has had no violations or "any form of recidivistic behavior" over the past 10 years.

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"I am very proud of the progress that has been made, that I have made strides in my personal and professional life in recent years, that my restitution is on track to be paid off completely within the next two years, and that the past nearly 10 years has turned out nearly as well as anyone could have hoped for - including myself," Harris-Moore wrote.

He says he doesn’t drink, doesn't use drugs, doesn't associate with any criminals and hasn't committed a single crime since 2010.

"I feel that I could be an inspirational model for people, not because of an arrogant sense of anything, but rather, because I have been to hell and back, still standing, still inspired, still making progress, still seeing the future, still alive and full of energy. I can show people that, even if they have a criminal record, even if they have debt, even if they thus far have not accomplished a single thing they once dreamt of - they still can."

Harris-Moore says his debt to victims, which originally stood at around $1.2 million, has been paid down to under $100,000 is on track to be paid off within a year or two.

Attached with his letter were eight others from those who know Harris-Moore supporting his early release, plus supporting statements from his attorney.

"He is an exemplary person and if what he went through helped to bring him to where he is now, then the justice system has more than done its job for Colton," wrote defense attorney Colleen Hartl in the formal request asking for Harris-Moore's early release. "I can’t see anything else he could get out of our system. It is time for him to move forward on the path laid for him from a successful justice system."

Harris-Moore's crime sprees began in his late teens in northern Washington where he earned the nickname "The Barefoot Bandit" due to leaving footprints at his crime scenes. After committing several property crimes across the region, Harris-Moore somehow, without any training, stole and piloted aircraft across the country.

He crashed one outside of Granite Falls, and walked away, evading capture for some time after that. Eventually he stole cars to drive across country, committing similar theft-type crimes along the way, until he stole another plane in Indiana and flew to the Bahamas. There, he was arrested after a wild boat chase.

In what his lawyer John Henry Browne called then the, "plea bargain of a lifetime," Moore at 19 was sentenced to more than 7 years in prison in a deal that consolidated most of the some 100 charges against him. He was released after serving 78 months.

"I am humbly and sincerely asking for your consideration, and help," Harris-Moore wrote the judge in closing. "I am not immune to the lessons offered by the justice system. I am someone who has learned from the past mistakes of naivety, youth, and of not taking lesson when there was an opportunity to do so. I have grown into a man who has taken responsibility, followed all of the rules, shown nearly everyone with respect, worked to build up my life, and continually move into the future with the benefit of knowing the difference between right and wrong."