Hodlonaut Image Controversy Leads Judge to Caution About Livestreaming in Wright-COPA Case

On February 9, amid a critical moment in the trial involving Craig Wright, who asserts he is the creator of Bitcoin, and the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), Judge Mellor issued a caution. The reason: an unauthorized courtroom image of Bitcoin influencer Hodlonaut was shared online, jeopardizing the ongoing live stream of the trial.

Unauthorized Hodlonaut Photo Provokes Judge’s Displeasure

The situation was highlighted when X user @bitnorbert reported that a photo of crypto influencer Hodlonaut surfaced online, purportedly taken from the trial’s livestream.

As a result, the issue was brought before Judge Mellor, who classified it as contempt of court.

Someone uploaded a picture of @hodlonaut from the courtroom yesterday, likely captured from the stream. This contempt of court has been referred to the Judge, and I anticipate he will address it during housekeeping first thing today. I wonder if they will terminate the stream because of…

— Norbert (@bitnorbert) February 8, 2024

During today’s opening statements, the judge remarked that the photo upload breached the terms of service and could result in the termination of the trial’s livestream.

At present, the identity of the individual who uploaded the photo remains unknown, and the court is unclear whether the person captured the image themselves or if it was provided by someone else. Nevertheless, Judge Mellor admonished those in the gallery, stressing that such incidents should not happen again.

Remote access is a privilege; I advise you to use it judiciously. It is unclear whether the poster took it themselves or if someone else provided it. If it occurs again, they will be identified and lose access. “I trust that will not happen again.”

— Norbert (@bitnorbert) February 8, 2024

In a prior legal dispute, self-identified Bitcoin creator Craig Wright filed a lawsuit against Hodlonaut in Norway. Following that legal action, Hodlonaut took to X, claiming that Wright threatened and harassed him, hoping he would capitulate.

The ongoing legal conflict with the pro-Bitcoin advocacy group COPA has revealed his network of falsehoods, however.

It’s quite satisfying to see Craig’s web of lies from the Norwegian trial against me catch up with him here in the UK.

They were so confident I would yield to the threats and harassment but ended up with a trial he lost that now comes back to haunt him in this trial.

KARMA

WELCOME…

— hodlonaut 80 IQ 13%er (@hodlonaut) February 8, 2024

Craig Wright Obtained ‘Commercial Loan’ from Calvin Ayre

Meanwhile, the trial proceeded with Wright undergoing cross-examination by COPA. In one of the exchanges, the COPA team inquired about the screenshots obtained from an Ontier machine. The date on which the screenshot was taken is the subject of dispute.

COPA contends that the timestamp on the screenshot indicates “March 9, 2020,” while the one at the bottom of the document reads “March 9th, 2020,” which is inconsistent. The COPA team speculated that the documents were downloaded from the internet, and multiple screenshots were taken.

COPA continues cross-examination. About MYOB.

C: You stated that screenshots were taken by Ontier.
W: Yes, explained in more detail in later chain-of-custody.
C: You maintained that the information in the screenshots was not influenced by the input you did [missed it] Asked if you had made the…

— Norbert (@bitnorbert) February 8, 2024

Another area of contention was the funding of Wright’s legal efforts against the Bitcoin developer community. According to a Reuters report, billionaire Calvin Ayre is financing the campaign initiated by Wright, who is also a co-founder of the Bitcoin Satoshi Vision (BSV) network.

Ayre reportedly funded Wright’s Bitcoin patent application some time ago. The COPA team has since refuted these claims, asserting that Wright secured a ‘commercial loan’ to support his lawsuits.

C: [shows doc] Your supporter Mr. Ayre tweets, mentions coffee stains and rusty staples. Is this a reference to this document?
W: I have no idea. You’re suggesting he’s my supporter. He’s not my financial backer; he’s independent […]C: He’s provided you financial support in some instances?…

— Norbert (@bitnorbert) February 8, 2024

Documents of screenshots presented by COPA, however, pointed to the former.

According to the team, an IRC chat message between the two individuals indicated they were in close communication.

The post Hodlonaut Photo Incident Sparks Judge’s Livestream Warning in Wright-COPA Case appeared first on Cryptonews.