Craig Wright, an Australian computer scientist who controversially claimed to be the inventor of Bitcoin, has been sentenced to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, by a London court. The sentence comes after Wright defied a court order in March 2024 that prohibited him from initiating further legal actions related to Bitcoin. Wright had filed a massive $1.9 trillion lawsuit against Block, a payments company founded by Twitter’s Jack Dorsey, a move that ultimately led to his conviction.
Wright first gained international attention in 2016 when he publicly claimed to be the elusive “Satoshi Nakamoto,” the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, asserting that he had written the 2008 whitepaper that outlined the foundational principles of the digital currency. Despite the widespread skepticism surrounding his claims, Wright persisted, but his credibility has since been repeatedly called into question in legal circles.
The case reached a turning point in May 2024 when Judge James Mellor ruled that Wright was not Satoshi Nakamoto and that he had deliberately fabricated evidence to support his claims. Court documents revealed that Wright had forged files, backdated documents, and faked emails to bolster his false assertions of being Bitcoin’s creator.
In the latest development, Wright’s $1.9 trillion lawsuit against Block was deemed a violation of a court order forbidding him from making any further legal claims related to Bitcoin. Lawyers representing the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), a coalition of technology and cryptocurrency firms, argued that Wright’s actions were in direct contempt of the court’s ruling. The judge agreed, sentencing Wright to one year in prison, although the sentence was suspended for two years.
Wright’s absence from a crucial hearing earlier this week raised further questions about his legal strategy. Despite being ordered to appear in court, Wright failed to attend the hearing, reportedly offering no explanation for his absence. He did, however, participate in his sentencing hearing remotely but declined to reveal his current location, only stating that he was in either Singapore or Indonesia.
During his sentencing, Judge Mellor emphasized that Wright’s actions demonstrated “a clear breach” of the legal order and reiterated that the court had found his claim to be Bitcoin’s creator to be fraudulent. The judge’s ruling, which effectively branded Wright as a “Bitcoin liar,” comes at a time when Bitcoin’s value has skyrocketed, trading at over $157,000 per coin as of Friday morning.
Wright has vowed to appeal the court’s finding of contempt, continuing his legal battle despite the mounting evidence against him. He remains a polarizing figure in the world of cryptocurrency, with many dismissing his claims while others continue to support him.
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