DEN Sources
A document-in-progress compiling firsthand reporting on DEN, Bitcoin, Brock Pierce and the Mike Egan / Bryan Singer lawsuit
(Organized By Date of Publication)
1998
Oasis Journal feature on Brock Pierce and “Chad’s World” Positive write up on the progressive, gay-friendly nature of DEN’s programming.
2000
“How a Visionary Venture on the Web Unraveled” LA Times expose by Joseph Menn on the collapse of DEN and the sexual abuse allegations against its founders.
“The Last Pixel Show” ZDNet article by Mike Ryan about the collapse of DEN, the sexual abuse allegations against the founders, and the mystery of their whereabouts. This is one of the first press mentions of the rape lawsuit made against Brock Pierce which he claimed to be “unaware” of for several years.
FuckedCompany DEN parody video South-Park style video produced by Fucked Company after DEN founders fled indictments in 2000.
2001
DEN Sex Suit Expanded With Additional Allegations LA Times article. With DEN founders missing, suit is expanded to lower-level executives and the casting agency they worked with in an attempt to collect damages.
2002
Spain Arrests Fugitive in Molestation Case LA Times article on the arrest of Marc Collins-Rector and other DEN founders in Spain. Quotes DOJ spokesperson Michael Drewniak on the case.
Arrests of DEN Founders in Spain
“A DEN OF INIQUITY ; AFTER 3-YEAR EXILE, WEB EXEC FACES PERV CHARGES” NY Post article on the extradition of Marc Collins-Rector from Spain to the USA after the arrest of the DEN founders in Spain. Mentions Michael Drewniak (currently working for NJ Governor Chris Christie) as the DOJ spokesperson for the case.
FBI Investigation into molestation which occurred at DEN during Pierce’s tenure. Details the cases of 4 boys who were recruited to work at DEN and molested by Marc Collins-Rector and “other executives.”
2003
“DEN Founder to Stand Trial in Molestation Case” LA Times article detailing the extradition of Marc-Collins Rector and his initial not-guilty plea against sex-trafficking charges. Pierce and Shackley are reported as released from Spanish jail and “whereabouts unknown.” At this point Pierce has still not returned to the USA to settle the default judgement entered against him in February 2001.
2004
USA today story on MCR’s charges and plea. Mentions Pierce as Collins-Rector’s housemate (Pierce had not, as he claimed to Ryan Selkis, cut ties to Collins-Rector, only to be “coincidentally” arrested, as Julian Dibbell reported).
2005
Unamended criminal complaint by Alain Debonneville, Brock Pierce’s partner at IGE. After the suit, which Pierce lost, he would successfully petition the court to have the information pertaining to his continued relationship Marc Collins-Rector struck from the document.
Court Order granting Pierce’s motion to have Debonneville’s complaint amended and sealed.
Debonneville’s amended complaint in which references to Brock Pierce’s continuing involvement with Marc Collins-Rector are struck.
“So Who Owns IGE Anyway?” discussion on the The Safe House (http://thesafehouse.org) messageboard (a forum for Everquest players). Previous iteration of crowdsourced investigations into Pierce / IGE (see bitcointalk.org thread for comparison)
2007
“Fast Company” expose in Radar Magazine by John Gorenfeld and Patrick Runkle, detailing the case of “Daniel S.” (also featured in “The Last Pixel Show” and potentially also victim “D.S” in the FBI Investigation)
“Gold-farming empire linked to dot-com child abuse scandal” BoingBoing post linking to Gorenfeld’s Radar Magazine article.
2008
IGE Lawsuit, Brock Pierce Begins Whitewashing His Past
After legal blogs started covering the IGE suit, Brock Pierce hit these sites with demands to have references to his time at DEN / involvement with Collins-Rector in Spain removed from their coverage.
Wayback Machine archive of law blog “Virtually Blind” post on Debonneville / IGE suit, before edits demanded by Pierce’s attorneys.
Blog post on law blog Virtually Blind on the unusual request by the defendant to have IGE complaint amended and sealed.
Demand from Pierce’s attorneys that Virtually Blind un-publish unamended IGE complaint.
The MMOG blog “Broken Toys” was covering the Pierce / Debonneville suit, but due to pressure from Pierce’s lawyers, their posts on the subject were scrubbed.
In May, 2014 these posts could be found in the Wayback Machine but since then all content from the Broken Toys blog appears to have been removed from theat archive.
“Pierce to Yantis to Evers to Chance” (plaintext pastebin from my archives)
Temporary Restraining Order, Brock Pierce vs Alain Debonneville. After losing his lawsuit to former business partner Alain Debonneville, Brock Pierce was issued a restraining order to prevent him from interfering with the payment of the settlement which he owed Debonneville.
Favorable Coverage in Mainstream Press
“The Decline and Fall of an Ultra Rich Online Gaming Empire” Wired Feature by Julian Dibbell describing Brock Pierce’s time at IGE and the lawsuits by his partner Alain Debonneville. Mentions that Pierce tried to purchase a Liberian ambassadorship for Marc Collins-Rector after Collins-Rector was arrested in Spain. This article was cited by members of the Bitcoin Foundation as evidence that Pierce has been vetted by the media and was suitable for Foundation Board membership.
“A Drive Through Laurel Canyon With Brock Pierce” Wired article by Julian Dibbell in which he describes the experience of interviewing Pierce for “Decline and Fall…”, and how, though he’s left with lingering questions, he doesn’t press Pierce for details on his relationship with Marc Collins-Rector or previous businesses.
2012
Post on Rigorous Intuition that led me to Gorenfeld’s article, and was my starting point for investigations.
2013
“Den of Iniquity” Narrative by the owner of “The Digital Entertainment Network” (tden.com) on his trademark dispute with DEN.
In 2013, Brock Pierce was sued by his bank for unpaid bills. He failed to appear in court and a default judgement was rendered against him.
UBS Bank USA vs Brock Pierce — case history from Pacer, detailing timeline default of default judgement entered against Brock Pierce after he dodged 5 attempts by his bank to serve him with a subpoena.
MEMORANDUM REGARDING PROPER SERVICE OF PROCESS — document form PACER archive detailing the extent to which UBS Bank went in serving a subpoena to Brock Pierce (including contacting the CTO of on of his companies multiple times).
Default Judgement against Brock Pierce — Pastebin of ruling from PACER.
On May 27, I notify Brock Pierce of the 2013 default judgement against him via Twitter mention and he acknowledges the lawsuit within 24 hours.
2014
Three More Entertainment Industry Figures Named In Sex Abuse Lawsuits
“Brock Pierce says Hollywood Reporter claims are bogus.” Blog Post by Ryan Selkis / Two Bit Idiot in which Selkis takes Pierce at his word that Pierce has a clean past. Selkis employs classic rape-apology rhetoric, essentially claiming the issue is too divisive / ugly to discuss, to justify his own conflict of interest in giving Pierce a pass (“After all, this is a dude with a lot of industry exposure and investments as it is.”) hoping the story will die so Bitcoiners like Selkis won’t lose money in the scandal.
“The Shady History of Brock Pierce” a pastebin of unknown authorship posted in 2014 to the Bitcoin Foundation forums by Olivier Janssens in the “Post Your Bitcoin Foundation Resignations Here” thread. Includes much of the same research + conclusions as this document, arrived at independently.
“More proof that savegox.com is a sham.” — BitcoinTalk forum thread in which Phineas Gage claims to have uncovered the Facebook profiles of Pierce, Collins-Rector and seveal dubious inviduals having links to US law enforcement / intelligence agencies. Linked from “The Shady History of Brock Pierce” pastebin.
“Post Your Bitcoin Foundation Resignations Here” thread on the Bitcoin Foundation website in which members announce their resignations over the election of Brock Pierce to the board.
“Brock Pierce’s Rebuttal” statement made to the Bitcoin Foundation, posted on their forum. A much longer dissection of this statement will be made elsewhere, but it’s noting that Pierce claims that the sexual abuse allegations made agains him were only an extortion attempt made by former employees, and the sexual abuse never happened. This is contradicted by the FBI investigation which led to 5 felony convictions against Pierce’s boss, Marc Collins-Rector (meaning that the abuse happened, and Pierce’s denial is a lie).
“Bobby Lee, Brock Pierce Join Bitcoin Foundation Board” Reddit post containing statements from Charlie Shrem on the board elections.
