The long-running legal drama between the Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA) and Dr. Craig Steven Wright came to a final conclusion today ruling from the court. Dr. Wright, who famously posed as Satoshi Nakamoto, the enigmatic creator of Bitcoin, was discovered to have committed extensive and deliberate fraud to support his claims, thus ending one of the most sensational identity claims in the history of technology with a high-profile judicial denial.

The case against Dr. Wright centered on his bold claim that he was the actual person behind the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, who introduced Bitcoin to the world in 2008 by publishing a white paper and then releasing the original source code. COPA, which represents a consortium of cryptocurrency entities, disputed Wright’s claims, leading to a comprehensive judicial review of his alleged evidence and testimony.

COPA triumphs over fraudulent Bitcoin inventor

The presiding judge was scathing in his assessment of Wright’s testimony, stating that throughout the trial Wright presented evidence that was “clumsy” in an attempt to deceive. “Dr. Wright is not as smart as he thinks he is,” the judge noted, explaining that the defendant had committed lies, fabrications and blaming others for discrepancies and falsehoods revealed during the trial.

“Once one lie was exposed, Dr. Wright resorted to more lies and prevarications. “The end result often turned out to be either Dr. Wright blaming another (often unidentified) person for his situation or something that could only be described as inconsistent,” the ruling states.

The forgeries included documents Wright presented as evidence of his involvement in the creation of Bitcoin that were later found to be altered or fabricated. The judgment highlighted the fact that despite Wright’s efforts to appear technologically and forensically savvy, the forgery attempts were amateurish in nature and easily apparent to experts.

Particularly damaging to Wright’s case was the testimony of Mr. Stefan Matthews, CEO of nChain Group, who initially supported Wright, but whose examined statements revealed inconsistencies and deliberate lies. The judge noted that while Matthews was “more careful about lying,” his testimony ultimately did not contradict the evidence presented by COPA.

On the other hand, Pieter Wuille, a well-known programmer in the Bitcoin community, presented a witness statement that the judge considered “the most important document in this trial.” Wuille’s detailed presentation of the timeline and technical details of Bitcoin’s development was instrumental in debunking Wright’s claims. His testimony, unchallenged by Wright’s defense, provided clear, credible insight into the technical workings of Bitcoin, contrasting sharply with Wright’s fabricated narratives.

Thanks @pwuillewhose witness testimony was “the most important document in this trial” and “was used to devastating effect” pic.twitter.com/Ha2x5IuLFV

— BitMEX Research (@BitMEXResearch) May 20, 2024

The judgment highlighted that Dr Wright’s false claims and subsequent legal maneuvering constituted a “grave abuse” of the judicial process not only in the UK but also in other jurisdictions such as Norway. The court postponed decisions on the details of the injunction, scheduling further hearings to discuss the ruling’s ramifications and potential public records amendments to the Bitcoin white paper and other documents.

“I am absolutely convinced that Dr. Wright lied extensively and repeatedly to the Court. Most of his lies involved a forged document to support his claims. “All his lies and forged documents confirmed his biggest lie: his claim to be Satoshi Nakamoto,” the judge concluded.

The crypto community has been watching this development with great interest, given its potential implications for the perception of Bitcoin’s origins and the integrity of its underlying documents. In a statement, BitMEX Research highlighted ongoing legal considerations regarding the availability of the Bitcoin white paper on platforms such as Bitcoin.org, noting that future rulings may further clarify these aspects.

In a witty comment, BitMEX Research noted: The “key” evidence from Danielle DeMorgan, Wright’s youngest sister, was that CSW “disguised as a ninja at a local park.” This gave “no credence to Dr. Wright’s claims that he is Satoshi.” Who would have thought?

At the time of publication, the price of BTC was $67,047.

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com