Self-proclaimed Satoshi Nakamoto Craig Wright suffered a massive blow today when a judge reportedly ordered him to turn over 50% of the bitcoin he mined with his former business associate, deceased computer genius Dave Kleiman.
Florida federal judge Bruce Reinhart also allegedly ordered Wright to give (to Kleiman’s estate) 50% of any intellectual property he had developed with Kleiman when the duo collaborated from 2008 until Kleiman’s death in 2013.
This information has not yet been confirmed but was shared on Twitter by someone who claims he had attended today’s hearing in Florida federal court.
Craig Wright allegedly perjured himself and falsified documents
Dave Kleiman and Craig Wright allegedly mined 1.1 million bitcoin before Kleiman’s tragic death in 2013. | Source: YouTube screenshots
According to the Twitter account 22nd Century Crypto, the “judge rejected all CSW testimony” and found that Craig Wright had “perjured himself,” “lied,” and “falsified documents.”
Judge reportedly referred to Wright as Satoshi Nakamoto
That said, the Twitter user claims that the judge had referred to Wright as “Satoshi Nakamoto” several times during the hearing and apparently believed that he was involved in the creation of bitcoin.
Wright not fined or jailed despite alleged perjury
Despite Judge Reinhart’s alleged assessment that Wright had lied and perjured himself, he apparently decided not to fine Wright or throw him in jail.
That’s noteworthy because perjury is a third-degree felony in Florida punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
While many on Crypto Twitter are wallowing in schadenfreude at this early defeat for Wright, keep in mind that the lawsuit is still ongoing.
The case is not over, only the contempt hearing. So we still haven’t gotten to the meat of the lawsuit.
A paperless entry of the proceedings was entered into the docket of the Kleiman v. Wright lawsuit but has not yet been made public.
CCN will post any updates as they become available. CCN is also awaiting comments from Craig Wright directly about today’s hearing.
Judged: Wright ‘failed to present any credible evidence’
As it is, there were hints that the contempt hearing would not go well for Wright.
As CCN reported on Aug. 15, Judge Beth Bloom expressed annoyance at what she considered conflicting statements made by Wright. For the record, Bloom is not the judge who presided over today’s contempt hearing.
Specifically, Judge Bloom suggested that Wright had lied about who were the members of W&K Info Defense Research.
Judge Bloom concluded that Wright “failed to present any credible evidence showing that any of the parties he suggests are members of W&K.”
Moreover, Judge Bloom wrote that “the Court simply does not find the Defendant’s testimony to be credible” as to membership in W&K.
W&K (which presumably stands for Wright & Kleiman) was the Florida-based company that Wright and Dave Kleiman had collaborated on before Kleiman died in 2013.
As CCN reported, Wright and Kleiman worked on blockchain and allegedly mined 1.1 million bitcoin during their five-year partnership. That bitcoin trove is now worth more than $11 billion.
Wright never shared that massive bitcoin fortune with Kleiman’s estate after he died, according to a 2018 lawsuit filed against him by Ira Kleiman, Dave’s brother.
Wright has denied all the claims in the Kleiman lawsuit and insists that he is the inventor of bitcoin.
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