Self-proclaimed Bitcoin inventor “Satoshi Nakamoto” Craig Wright was sentenced to one year of probation and fined £145,000 (approximately $180,000) by a UK court on December 19 for continuously suing cryptocurrency companies in violation of a court order.
As early as March this year, a UK court had already ruled that Craig Wright is not the Bitcoin creator Satoshi Nakamoto. However, he continued to bully, intimidate the Bitcoin community and developers under the identity of “Satoshi Nakamoto” and kept filing lawsuits, ultimately leading to court sanctions. Due to his Australian nationality, he has been jokingly referred to as “Fauxtoshi” by the community.
Five counts of contempt of court were established, and the UK court sentenced him to one year of probation.
Reportedly, “Fauxtoshi” was previously ordered by a UK court in July to stop suing related cryptocurrency companies under the identity of “Satoshi Nakamoto,” but he completely disregarded the order. He even sued over 100 companies and demanded a whopping £900 billion (approximately $1.14 trillion) in damages.
Jonathan Hough, a lawyer for the Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA), accused these lawsuits of being purely “public relations stunts.” The UK court sentenced “Fauxtoshi” to one year of imprisonment for five counts of contempt of court, with a two-year probation period and a fine of £145,000.
Having previously appealed but been rejected, he faces counterattacks from the defendants
As early as March this year, a UK court had already ruled that “Fauxtoshi” is not “Satoshi Nakamoto” and stated that his testimony contained many false statements. “Fauxtoshi” subsequently filed an appeal, but in July this year, the UK Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal and upheld the original judgment.
On the other hand, some victims who were sued and bullied by “Fauxtoshi” chose to fight back. For example, Peter McCormack, host of the podcast “What Bitcoin Did,” previously lost a lawsuit against “Fauxtoshi,” leading to the UK High Court freezing some of “Fauxtoshi’s” assets to help McCormack recover $1.9 million in legal fees, which stemmed from a defamation lawsuit filed by Craig Wright against McCormack.
The identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains a mystery
Although “Fauxtoshi” has always claimed to be “Satoshi Nakamoto,” the court believes that he has not provided sufficient evidence to prove this. Since the release of the Bitcoin white paper in 2008, the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains a mystery.
Nevertheless, “Fauxtoshi” continues to deceive under the name of “Satoshi Nakamoto” and continues to sue related cryptocurrency companies. Whether this probation sentence will teach him a lesson remains to be seen.
(Ruling Released: Bitcoin.org Owner Ordered to Take Down Bitcoin White Paper and Pay “Fauxtoshi” Legal Fees)
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