This is applicable to both civil and criminal. For example, I’ve been pirating for over 26 years. I can’t be sued by anyone for the pirating I’ve done for 23 of those years, only for the past 3 years that I’ve pirated.
If anyone tries to scare you about how you’ll be caught for your past pirating activities, don’t be.
Copyright isn’t about owning a pirated copy, it’s about distribution, right? The act of distributing a copy has a statute of limitations of 3 years is what OP is claiming.