Self-proclaimed Bitcoin creator Craig Wright made a shocking revelation on February 15. He admitted to destroying the hard drives containing his private keys, citing his mental state at the time. According to Wright, he had just returned from the hospital and was heavily sedated due to lack of sleep. In this impaired state, he expressed feelings of fatigue, anger, and upset, which led him to the impulsive act of destroying Satoshi’s hard drives.
Upon further examination by the legal team from the Cypherpunks Ongoing Projects Archive (COPA), it was revealed how Wright had destroyed the hard drives. Wright confessed that he had thrown the hard drives onto the ground, stomped on one, and used a hammer on the other. However, the COPA representatives challenged Wright’s claim, pointing out the distinction between impulsively destroying something and deliberately doing so due to the lack of encryption in the Bitcoin network.
Craig Wright defended his actions by emphasizing the significant time investment he had made in the Bitcoin project, considering it his life’s work. However, his next statement raised doubts regarding his true intentions. He declared that he did not set out to create an “anti-government thing” that would provoke him. This statement directly clashes with the original purpose of the Bitcoin network, which was to eliminate centralized control and challenge the traditional financial and governance systems.
The destruction of the hard drives containing the private keys holds a significant consequence: the absence of personalized signatures from the self-proclaimed Bitcoin creator. This means that there will be no further signed transactions with the destroyed private keys. The COPA team acknowledged this fact and noticed that Wright did not appear motivated to recover the keys. When questioned about it, Wright claimed that the on-site computers couldn’t be accessed by AlixPartners, the company involved in the case. The COPA team countered by referring to Wright’s previous statement in court, where he admitted to not attempting to access the keys following the hospital incident. Wright cited damage to the QNAP servers as the reason for his reluctance.
In response to Wright’s explanation, the COPA team called out his Hodlonaut declaration, where he stated that he “could” regain access to the keys by tracking down the data. The team argued that this contradicted his recent testimony. Wright claimed that he hadn’t tried to regain access until 2019 because he still hadn’t received the QNAP servers. The COPA team pointed out the inconsistency in his statements, highlighting that he previously stated the QNAP servers still existed and that he could retrieve the keys once he had them.
Wright further alleged that someone intentionally leaked 240TB of his data, which he believed was an orchestrated effort to tarnish his reputation. The ongoing legal battle between the COPA team and Wright aims to resolve the dispute over his claim of being the true founder of the Bitcoin network. In a declaration from 2016, Wright asserted that he founded the pseudonymous network and prohibited Bitcoin developers from using it due to copyright infringements. The COPA team, composed of industry experts, is seeking a court declaration that definitively bans Wright from exercising any rights related to the network. However, Wright’s case has been met with skepticism due to the irregularities found in several pieces of evidence presented.
Craig Wright’s admission to destroying the hard drives containing his private keys has raised many questions about his credibility as the creator of Bitcoin. The contradictions in his testimony, his denial of creating an “anti-government thing,” and the absence of personalized signatures all undermine his claim. The ongoing legal battle will be crucial in determining the truth behind Wright’s involvement in the Bitcoin network and the validity of his claims.
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