By Mark Hunter
22 hours agoWed Mar 13 2024 07:57:02
Reading Time: 2 minutes
- The Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA) has requested that Craig Wright face criminal action over what they see as fraud perpetrated on the court
- COPA has accused Wright of industrial-scale forgery, urging Justice Mellor to forward the file to the public prosecutor following his judgment
- This action could see Wright face charges of trying to pervert the course of justice
The Cryptocurrency Open Patent Alliance (COPA) has asked that the judge in its case against Satoshi Nakamoto claimant Craig Wright be handed to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for potential criminal action once the ruling is handed down. COPA, whose barrister Jonathan Hough famously opened the trial by claiming that Wright had committed forgery on an “industrial scale,” has asked that Justice Mellor pass the file to the DPP after alleging that, in trying to fraudulently prove his case, Wright has committed not just fraud on COPA but fraud upon the court, a much more serious allegation.
No Precedent for Volume of Lying, Says COPA
The COPA vs. Wright case has been running in London since early February, with this week reserved for closing arguments. COPA posted its closing arguments online shortly after the session began yesterday, and eagle-eyed readers who couldn’t wait for Hough to mention it in court spotted a key line:
🚨BREAKING: COPA v Wright joint trial.
COPA will ask for Craig Wright to be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions for consideration of criminal prosecution for the offences of perjury and perverting the course of justice. #COPA #Faketoshi #BSV 1/2 pic.twitter.com/xhFZirUkK9
— *WuCoin* Faketoshi getting rekt enjoyer (@hascendp6) March 12, 2024
The reason for this decision is made clear in COPA’s summing up, where they accuse Wright of lying on “an extraordinary scale,” adding that it is “difficult to think of a precedent for what he has done.” These lies allegedly include falsifying his “entire biographical history,” with COPA claiming that Wright doubled down with further lies when the first tranche was called out, which was perhaps notable with another forgery that emerged mid-way through the trial to explain falsified accounting data.
Conspiracy of One
COPA also refers to the “litany of characters” Wright blamed throughout the trial in order to frame the “vast and ever-growing conspiracy to frame him,” adding that Wright “used his time in the witness box to defame, blame and attack anyone he could identify to defend his position.” This cast included Bitcoin developers, prior law firms, former litigants, and unnamed ex-staff members. None of these claims came with evidence.
Wright, COPA summarized, has “attempted a very serious fraud upon the Court,” hence why it has asked Justice Mellor not just to rule against Wright but to forward the case for criminal review. Prosecution in the UK over such matter is rare but it does happen, with a couple of notable cases in the past. However, if Justice Mellor agrees with COPA that Wright’s lying is without precedent then he may agree to ask for prosecution in order to punish him for his “outrageous” lies.
