TEMPLE CITY, California (Reuters) - A Japanese American man thought to be the reclusive multi-millionaire father of Bitcoin emerged from a modest Southern California home and denied involvement with the digital currency before leading reporters on a freeway car chase to the local headquarters of the Associated Press. "I never was involved," he said to a Times reporter, saying there was only one reason he had agreed to even talk to a reporter. Nakamoto's modest home surprised the reporter because the real bitcoin creator owns about $400 million in bitcoins. Following a trail of clues over several months, Newsweek reporter Leah McGrath Goodman believed she had tracked down the real bitcoin creator. He worked for defense and electronics company Hughes Aircraft, but never discussed work because much of it was classified, according to Newsweek interviews with several friends and relatives. Smart, intelligent, mathematics, engineering, computers.
– The man "unmasked" as the founder of bitcoin by Newsweek says he'd never even heard of the virtual currency until reporters tracked his son down a couple of weeks ago. In an exclusive interview with the AP, Dorian Nakamoto—also known as Satoshi Nakamoto—says many of the details in the Newsweek report about him are correct, but he strongly denies having anything to do with bitcoin, which he repeatedly referred to as "Bitcom." Newsweek's reporter stands by her story, but Nakamoto—who says he came to the US from Japan when he was 10 but his English isn't flawless—believes a key quote was misinterpreted. "It sounded like I was involved before with bitcoin and looked like I'm not involved now. That's not what I meant. I want to clarify that," he says, explaining that he worked on missile systems for years and many aspects of his career are confidential. While Nakamoto was speaking to the AP, reporters from outlets including the Los Angeles Times and Reuters followed their car in a farcical chase that ended at the AP's offices in downtown Los Angeles. (Click for more on Leah McGrath Goodman's Newsweek profile.)