Craig Wright, who repeatedly and falsely claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the founder of Bitcoin, has been sentenced to 12 months in prison for breach of court.
The sentence, handed down by a court in London, was suspended for two years.
Craig Wright and His Obsession with Satoshi Nakamoto Put Him in Jail
The case stems from Wright’s $1.1 trillion legal claim for intellectual property rights related to Bitcoin, which was filed in violation of a previous court ruling. see details.
The Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) brought this case against Wright, arguing that his October petition did not comply with a July decision barring him from taking legal action regarding the claim. Nakamoto.
Judge Mellor ruled in March that Wright was not the anonymous founder of Bitcoin and barred him from pursuing related cases in the UK or elsewhere.
Throughout 2024, Craig Wright faced multiple legal challenges over his claims. A British court rejected his evidence, considering the case baseless.
“This sentence of Craig Wright is proof that truth matters and justice can prevail. Wright has been held accountable, and the CPS investigation into the perjury charges against him and Matthews is an important next step. Calvin Ayre’s role in financing and supporting this fraud also needs to be scrutinized,” noted businessman Christen Ager-Hanssen write on X (formerly Twitter)
Wright, who attended the sentencing virtually from an undisclosed location in Asia, vowed to appeal the sentence. He declined to reveal his exact location.
As Bitcoin’s popularity exploded this year thanks to its historic price rally, interest in the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto also attracted a lot of attention. Recently, the HBO documentary Money Electric caused controversy when it suggested Canadian cryptographer Peter Todd could be Nakamoto.
However, Todd has denied the allegations and is said to have gone into hiding following threats and unwanted attention.
The mystery deepened in October when Stephen Mollah announced at a press conference in London that he was Nakamoto. The event descended into chaos when Mollah failed to provide reliable evidence, and technical problems further undermined his claim.
Despite ongoing conjectures and high profile facts, the true identity of Bitcoin’s creator remains undiscovered. Many times, individuals like Wright, claiming to be that anonymous figure, only incur unnecessary trouble.