Craig Wright Sentenced to 12 Months in Jail for False Satoshi Claims

Craig Wright, who has long claimed to be Satoshi Nakamoto, the mysterious creator of Bitcoin, has been sentenced to 12 months in jail for contempt of court. The ruling stems from a $1.1 trillion lawsuit he filed over Bitcoin-related intellectual property, in direct violation of a previous court order.

Craig Wright Faces Legal Disputes Over False Claims

The Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) initiated legal action against Wright, arguing that his October lawsuit ignored a July court ruling barring him from pursuing cases tied to his claim of being Nakamoto. Earlier in March, Judge Mellor dismissed Wright’s assertions, ruling that he was not the creator of Bitcoin and prohibiting him from filing related lawsuits in the UK or elsewhere.

Wright’s latest legal troubles follow years of controversy over his identity claims. In 2024, a UK court declared his evidence as baseless, adding to his growing list of legal defeats. Despite attending his sentencing virtually from an undisclosed location in Asia, Wright announced plans to appeal but declined to reveal his whereabouts.

Bitcoin’s Creator Mystery Deepens

As Bitcoin’s value skyrocketed this year, public interest in the identity of its creator also intensified. Speculation has fueled several high-profile events, including HBO’s documentary Money Electric, which controversially linked Canadian cryptographer Peter Todd to Satoshi Nakamoto. Todd denied the claims and reportedly went into hiding following threats.

The intrigue deepened in October when Stephen Mollah claimed at a London press conference to be Nakamoto. However, his failure to present credible evidence and technical glitches turned the event into a debacle.

While figures like Wright and Mollah continue to capture headlines, the true identity of Satoshi Nakamoto remains elusive. For now, Bitcoin’s creator remains shrouded in mystery, leaving the crypto world to focus on innovation rather than unresolved claims.