You could imagine that catching and prosecuting pirates might have been difficult in most cases. Did your average pirate stand a good chance of making a fortune without any long term consequences?
I think the only meaningful way to look at this would be to consider how many actually succeeded in doing it - and the answer is: not many.
Most of the time the English/British government was prepared to offer a pardon to pirates who surrendered, gave up whatever wealth they had accumulated (which was usually not that much), and promise to be model citizens henceforth. In the colonies, corrupt officials could sometimes be prevailed upon to grant a pardon or immunity in exchange for a bribe, allowing the pirates to keep the bulk of their wealth, as several men from Henry Every's company were able to do in Pennsylvania, for example.
Pirate who didn't surrender voluntarily could expect short shrift if they were captured. If they were lucky they might be able to persuade their captors to grant them pardon in exchange for evidence that would convict their fellows, but at best only one or two men from any crew were likely to be successful at that, and only then if there was a shortage of evidence that could otherwise be used to secure a conviction of the rest.
Very few pirates made what could be termed a 'fortune'. Oliver la Buse and his men did extremely well, but la Buse ended his life on the gallows because he didn't know when to quit. Off the top of my head I can think of only three pirate companies who made a 'fortune' and lived to enjoy it.
Richard Taylor (sometime consort of la Buse) made many thousands of pounds, quit while he was ahead, and led his company to Porto Bello where they received a Spanish pardon. Taylor was reported as moving to Cuba, buying a plantation and a trading ship, and still living in comfort in 1744, 22 years after his retirement.
Edmund(?) Condent made enough money to make it worth his retiring and sought a pardon from the French at Reunion in the Seychelles. He and his company became respected members of the community there and later helped broker a ransom deal between Richard Taylor and the Reunion government.
Henry Every gave up piracy in possession of a fortune of about £3,000, with lesser amounts for his crew. His infamy was such that he couldn't have secured a pardon from any English government, but he managed to return to England and disappear, presumably living whatever was left of his life in comfortable anonymity.