The Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA) v. Dr. Craig Wright trial lasted ten days, with both sides refuting each other’s claims.
The trial is aimed at disproving Wright’s claim that he is Satoshi Nakamoto, the pseudonymous creator of Bitcoin.
The main details of the trial conducted so far are as follows.
Wright denied forging documents.
COPA says Wright’s claims are “brazen lies supported by industrial-scale falsification.” COPA attorneys presented evidence demonstrating that several documents submitted by Wright were fabricated or falsified.
During questioning on the second day of trial CryptoSlate Although covered in detail, Wright denied the forgery charges. He said that if he wanted to forge a document, he would make sure it was “perfect” and there would be no discrepancies.
Wright also claimed he knew better than the expert witnesses who testified the documents were forged. Judge Mellor described Wright’s response to the COPA evidence as “long,” “rambling” and in some cases “inappropriate.”
evidence of plagiarism
On the second day, COPA lawyers presented evidence that Dr. Wright had plagiarized his paper from another research paper.
Wright admitted to using someone else’s work, but argued that the apparent plagiarism was due to his having access to the paper before publication. He also criticized editors.
Inconsistent Evidence and Testimony
COPA attorneys pointed out several irregularities and inconsistencies between the evidence and testimony provided by Wright in the current and previous trials.
For example, at a previous trial, Wright testified that he typed an email to Dave Kleimann’s father saying that Kleimann and Wright were two of the “three key people behind Bitcoin.”
But earlier this week, Wright said one of his employees typed up an email to Kleimann’s father to make him “proud” of his son. He also said he typed the sentence but not the email.
Lawyers question witness credibility
COPA lawyers on February 15 examined three defense witnesses who claimed they had discussions with Dr. Wright about Bitcoin-related concepts prior to 2008.
Lawyers argued the witness’s testimony was “vague” and unreliable because the incident happened 16 years ago.
Wright’s sister testifies.
The trial took an even more outrageous turn on February 16 when Wright’s sister, Danielle DeMorgan, came forward to testify.
She told the court there was a time when Wright dressed up as a ninja when he was around 18 or 19 years old. DeMorgan also recalled seeing him working in a room full of computers in 2007 or 2008.
These events, along with the fact that Wright likes Japanese names, were enough to hint to DeMorgan that her brother was the creator of Bitcoin.
The case is scheduled to continue in February when more of Dr. Wright’s witnesses will testify. COPA witnesses are expected to take the stand on Tuesday. Dr. Wright is scheduled to be cross-examined next Friday.