- ZachXBT no longer faces a defamation lawsuit after MachiBigBrother dropped the case
- The lawsuit came after ZachXBT accused MachiBigBrother of embezzling 22,000 ETH
- The crypto sleuth raised millions in his defense from donations
Crypto scam buster ZachXBT won’t have to face a defamation lawsuit from a man he accused of defrauding his followers after the case against him was dropped. X (formerly Twitter) user MachiBigBrother (real name Jeffrey Huang) sued ZachXBT (Zachary Wolk) over the latter’s claims that Huang embezzled 22,000 ETH through Formosa Financial, a defunct crypto treasury management platform co-founded by Huang. Huang revealed yesterday that he had dropped the suit, saying that legal action was “not the right path.”
Wolk Alleged Mass Embezzlement
Huang’s Formosa Financial platform was one of many targets selected by Wolk for investigation, with Wolk alleging that Huang misappropriated millions of dollars in Ethereum from the platform prior to its closure, using on-chain data to support his claims. Huang responded by filing a defamation lawsuit, in which he vehemently denied Wolk’s accusations of embezzling the ETH, branding the idea as “categorically false.”
Huang contended that Wolk lacked substantial evidence to back his damaging allegations, including the insinuation that Huang never had control over the funds that Wolk alleges were misused.
“Not The Right Path”
Wolk revealed the lawsuit on then-Twitter in June and began a crowdfunding campaign for his legal fees, which topped $1 million within 24 hours in a show of support for his work in outing scammers. However, Wolk didn’t even get a chance to file a defense before Huang withdrew the case, potentially after realising that his entire crypto history, and much more, would be opened up to scrutiny.
Haung confirmed the pulling of the lawsuit yesterday, although some pointed out that the damage had already been done:
Really makes it look like you were just posturing with this lawsuit and really makes you look guilty in the court of public opinion @machibigbrother
— Hamilton reallycoolguy.eth (@Really_Hamilton) August 14, 2023
Wolk added his take, saying that the unused donations would be returned:
2/2 I would like to thank everyone in the community for their donations and support during the process.
It meant a great deal to me and made a huge difference.
Soon I will announce the process of returning any unused funds from the legal defense.
— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) August 14, 2023
This unsuccessful, and possibly damaging, enterprise from Huang might make others think twice before launching such lawsuits against those who accuse them, rightly, it seems, of wrongdoing.
