Computer scientist claims ‘Spy in the bag’ helped to create Bitcoin, court hears

James Titcomb
Mon, 5 February 2024 

Australian computer scientist Craig Wright arriving at the High Court in London on Monday - Hannah McKay/Reuters

An MI6 officer found dead in a holdall bag in his London flat 14 years ago was instrumental in the creation of Bitcoin, according to a man who claims to be its inventor.

The High Court heard on Monday that Craig Wright, an Australian programmer, allegedly named Gareth Williams as a key player in Bitcoin’s creation during separate proceedings in the US.

The allegation was made amid a bitter legal battle between Mr Wright and the Crypto Open Patent Alliance (COPA), an industry group funded by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey.


The broader dispute revolves around whether Mr Wright is Bitcoin’s inventor.

COPA alleges that Mr Wright’s claims about Mr Williams being one of three “key people” behind Bitcoin is a pattern of him having “implausible dealings with people who have died”.

It is alleged that Mr Wright also claimed to have known Dave Kleiman, a forensics expert who died in 2013, and David Rees, a British computer scientist who helped decode Nazi communications at Bletchley Park during the Second World War.

COPA argues that Mr Wright claimed to have spoken to Mr Williams in 2011 – a year after he had died.

Mr Williams was a codebreaker on secondment from GCHQ when he was discovered inside a zipped and padlocked bag in his central London flat 14 years ago.

At the opening of the five-week trial on Monday, Jonathan Hough KC, representing COPA, called Mr Wright’s claim “a brazen lie and elaborate false narrative supported by forgery on an industrial scale”.

Mr Wright, who appeared in court wearing a grey double-breasted pinstripe suit, has denied that he is a liar. His own legal argument did not mention Mr Williams.

COPA claims that Mr Wright has failed to provide genuine proof of his claims and that his evidence consists of doctored documents.

Mr Wright’s barrister Lord Grabiner KC said Mr Wright had “spent many years devoted to studying and working on concepts underpinning Bitcoin” adding that there was “clear evidence” that he had created Bitcoin.

Mr Wright is expected to begin giving evidence on Tuesday.