A US judge has ruled that Craig Wright, who claims to be the founder of Bitcoin, has shown evidence of derogatory behavior in court proceedings related to a $143 million dispute over ownership of Bitcoin (BTC).
Wright, who claims to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious founder of Bitcoin, is still locked in a legal battle over ownership of BTC.
Bitcoin ownership dispute worth $143 million
Craig Wright, the controversial computer scientist who has long claimed to be the elusive Bitcoin founder, Satoshi Nakamoto, has once again found himself in hot water over a dispute over the multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency.
In a ruling issued on May 5, U.S. Magistrate Judge Bruce Reinhart accused Wright of showing “ prima facie evidence” of degrading conduct in legal proceedings related to a $143 million property dispute.
the case centers About a legal battle between Wright and Ira Kleiman, who claims to have rights to BTC, his late brother David Kleiman is said to have mined.
In 2022, a judge ruled in favor of Kleiman and his associated company, W&K. However, Wright failed to provide the personal information necessary to force the payment.
As a result, W&K asked the court to hold contempt of court proceedings against Wright and imposed fines of $250,000 per day.
Wright is involved in multiple legal battles over his claims of being a pseudonymous author of the bitcoin white paper. However, he needs to provide convincing evidence to support his assertion.
False factual judgment
In response to this request, Reinhart said, “In the current record, there is prima facie evidence of degrading conduct,” and added that Wright “refused to provide basic information about his wife and her ancestry” on the form.
Justice of the Peace Bruce Reinhart declared that Craig Wright’s claim that the form had to be kept confidential to avoid disclosure of sensitive personal data was “factually wrong”, adding that the appointment had been improper from the start.
The unsealed figure shows Wright’s pseudonym as “Satoshi Nakamoto”. It also indicates that his assets have been assigned or transferred to others.
Craig Wright and his attorneys have until May 18 to respond. The next hearing, on July 6 in Palm Beach, Florida, will examine the facts related to the alleged non-compliance.