- Craig Wright receives a one-year suspended sentence for contempt.
- The Crypto Open Patent Alliance challenges Wright’s Bitcoin claims.
- Judge orders Wright to publicly deny being Bitcoin’s creator.
Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist who has repeatedly claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, is facing legal consequences for contempt of court. A UK judge sentenced him to a one-year suspended prison term for defying court orders while continuing to pursue lawsuits concerning Bitcoin’s origins.
Craig Wright Sentenced for Contempt of Court
Craig Wright, known for his controversial claims of being Bitcoin’s creator, has received a one-year suspended prison sentence. The ruling follows his failure to comply with court directives while persisting in legal disputes over Bitcoin’s origins.
Judge James Mellor delivered the ruling after Craig Wright failed to comply with an earlier order to cease litigation against developers. This legal dispute stems from Wright’s persistent claims of being the creator of Bitcoin—a claim widely dismissed by the cryptocurrency community. The true creator of Bitcoin and author of the Bitcoin whitepaper is a pseudonymous figure known as Satoshi Nakamoto, a persona Wright has repeatedly asserted as his own.
The Crypto Open Patent Alliance Challenged Wright’s Bitcoin Claims
The Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) played a key role in challenging Wright’s claims. COPA, a non-profit organization, has been involved in legal battles against Wright for years and has challenged his claim to be the inventor of Bitcoin.
The libel and copyright infringement lawsuits filed by Wright made COPA to accuse him of producing fake documents. The group wanted to bring to a stop the “scam” of the Bitcoin founder as well as his false authorship of Bitcoin’s white paper and the creation of the cryptocurrency.
Judge Orders Wright to Deny Bitcoin Creator Claim Publicly
Judge Mellor ordered Wright to publicly deny his claim that he’s the creator of Bitcoin and the the author of Bitcoin whitepaper. The Judge insisted that Wright had to release a statement on various websites such as his X account feed and the various slack channels that he used stating he is not Satoshi Nakamoto.
This court order followed multiple rulings against Wright which dismissed his statements that he was the founder of Bitcoin. However, Wright has continued to refuse to comply with these rulings which has led to increased legal and public scrutiny.