The highly controversial COPA lawsuit against Wright took a dramatic turn today as Craig Wright was accused of manipulating key evidence to support his claim that he was the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin, Satoshi Nakamoto. Reporting via live broadcast from the court, CryptoSlate I listened to Wright's testimony in what will likely be his final appearance.
The day's proceedings focused on emails allegedly sent between Wright and his former law firm, Ontier LLP. These emails are key to proving or debunking Wright's long-standing claim regarding the identity of Satoshi Nakamoto.
COPA, represented by Mr. Hough, argued that changes to SPF (Sender Policy Framework) registrations for several domains controlled by Wright occurred suspiciously on February 29, 2024, the same day Wright submitted new evidence. This timing casts doubt on the legitimacy of the documents submitted.
COPA focused its attack on a December 2019 email chain between Wright and Ontier regarding MYOB accounting software. While acknowledging the authenticity of the conversation, Wright claimed that missing portions of the email existed.
Importantly, Wright's wife sent a version of this same email chain to his current attorneys in February 2024. COPA pointed out that this email contained an nChain logo with a timestamp of February 18, 2024, which which made this chronologically impossible since the email was from 2019. Wright disputed this, bizarrely suggesting that Google is manipulating email timestamps.
After an initial refusal, Wright was forced to admit under cross-examination that the “Ramona email” sent by his wife was not authentic. This admission came only after Ontier LLP confirmed the falsified email following its investigation.
Amid errant testimonies, Bitmex Research journalists capture Wright's following statement,
“Hough: Do you think the impersonator did it the same morning your wife sent the real version, by coincidence?
CSW: Unfortunately, yes. »
Bitmex Research has compiled a chart in an attempt to highlight Wright's account of the evidence. Wright claims that on February 18, 2024, Ontier received a fake email that he claimed contained legitimate information regarding his MYOB login information. At the same time, he also sent his wife identical information, which he claimed was legitimate communication.
Wright's Defense: Spoofing Allegations and Shifting Responsibility
In a counterargument, Wright claimed that a nearly identical but spoofed email was sent to Ontier on February 24, 2024. He made vague technical arguments about email headers and malleable timestamps , insisting that the dates are unreliable.
When the judge pressed for details about the identity theft allegation — asking who was responsible and what their motive was — Wright said it was a simple act. He further suggested that many people could be suspects, as many had copies of his emails. The judge interjected with pointed questions seeking to clarify Wright's accusations.
Wright spent a lot of time in his statement discussing an email that he later said was false. This contradiction, coupled with the inconsistencies regarding the nChain logo and the fortuitous timing of the SPF record changes, seriously undermines Wright's credibility.
Ultimately, Wright claims a spoofed email was sent, making it appear as if he doctored it to discredit his claim. Essentially, he doesn't deny the falsified data, but rather than admit responsibility, he alleges that someone is trying to sabotage his defense.
After lunch, expert witness Mr. Madden took the stand again. He stated,
“There are no such indicators of identity theft. The layout of this header is typical of a standard infrastructure.
A key part of Wright's defense is that he, the alleged creative genius behind Bitcoin, the world's most secure decentralized network, has been hacked repeatedly by multiple parties. Because of these hacks, it was discredited.