Edit: Oooops, I published too soon without waiting for the actual sentence! The Judge sentenced Wright to 1 year but suspended the sentence for 2 years to see if Wright will start paying his fines. Unsatisfying conclusion and won’t stop the chaos that Wright creates every minute of his nasty life.
PROFESSIONAL CRIMINALS NEED TO BE IN JAIL FOR LIFE.
However: I have TREMENDOUS respect for this judge. He put a vast amount of work into understanding the technical details of the case and the depths of Wright’s criminality. Until now he has been firm and resolute in his decisions and orders. So I trust that he has a damn good reason for this decision. I don’t know the reason, but it must be there.
= = = = =
I’ve been tracking the weird case of Craig Wright, the ultimate Professional Criminal. He lies and cheats all the time, even when the cheating costs huge amounts of money and his freedom. He’s utterly incapable of doing ANYTHING the honest way, and doesn’t even know what it means.
First, from yesterday (12/18) when Wright refused to appear, claiming that he needed $240k for travel…
= = = = = START QUOTE:
Judge Mellor: I also remember that Wright only got interested in Bitcoin in 2014.
Prosecutor Hough: We have evidence of 2013. His true fascination started during the Australian Tax Office investigation when he needed to explain how money arrived out of nowhere.
= = = = = END QUOTE.
I got interested in Bitcoin in 2014, and immediately understood it was a sting.
12/19 Here’s the actual sentencing as reported by BitMex right now.
= = = = = START QUOTE:
Judge Mellor: First item for today is my judgements and findings.
1. I address the accusation I should recuse myself. I have rejected the allegation of bias and certify it as without merit.
2. I address my reasons for proceeding in the trial in his absence.
3. CSW’s allegations are based on a fundamental misunderstanding of passing off copyright doctrine. CSW has to allege ownership to do passing off, which is in plain breach of the injunction from July 2024.
I find CSW in contempt in each of the 5 grounds, to a criminal standard, beyond any reasonable doubt.
Judge: Now we move on to sentencing.
CSW: I still do not believe that the areas you have addressed are correct. Under the ECHR there are a number of cases that would apply, pre-brexit, so it is my understanding that you are not correct. I do not agree with the factual statments you have made and I will be appealing.
CSW: There have been 17 changes to Bitcoin in the last 6 months. For example Taproot, which enables money laundering in breach of the law.
Judge Mellor: None of what you have said causes me to reconsider my findings. You can appeal to the court of appeal and you do not need permission.
Jonathan Hough KC: We ask for a 2 year sentence and for the new claim to be struck out.
= = = = = END QUOTE.
So Wright will of course appeal, but there’s zero chance that the appeal will go anywhere.
Incidentally, the fact that he thought Bitcoin would be an untraceable tax evasion mechanism is the best self-contained proof that he is not Satoshi. The writer of the code SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED the sting to be traceable, and he knew who he was working for. Satoshi, or his employers, publicized the sting as untraceable so fools like Wright would start using it for crimes, which could then be carefully tracked by NSA.
Wright thought he had a gimmick that would make him rich and taxfree, the ultimate dream of all billionaires. ZERO TAX, never paying anything to anyone for any reason, is the primary goal of a billionaire. Wealth is a side effect. Successful billionaires like Bezos and Elon have the criminal drive plus intelligence and judgment. Family connections also help. (Bezos’s grandpa founded DARPA.)
Wright lacks strategic intelligence and connections, so his drive didn’t get anywhere.
Wright based his whole plan on this one gimmick, ultimately losing his freedom. It’s the same story as Ponzi, who thought that Postal Reply Coupons were the perfect gimmick.
These twitter streams include scathing comments from Wright’s cultists, who bash the factual reporters for daring to desecrate Jesus Wright, The Holy Font Of All Goodness. Ponzi himself must have gathered similar undying cultists. When Racket Squad did a wonderful dramatization of Ponzi’s life and tricks in 1952, they carefully avoided mentioning the name. Instead they called him Gaston Romaine, but the character obviously had an Italian accent and Italian friends.
Polistra's Mill 