Wikipedia:Sockpuppet investigations/WayneRay/Archive

30 June 2015

 * Suspected sockpuppets




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See Haiku Tea's entire edit history: extensive promotional edits to the Wayne Ray (auto)biography, and also edits other pages where Ray is mentioned. See for example the newly created (by HT) article London Arts Council, which names Ray as a member, and cites "Archives collection of Wayne Ray" as a source. Note also this edit on Talk:Ernest Harmon Air Force Base, where HT edits a post made by WR back in 2005. Note that sock User:WayneScottRay appeared soon after WR was blocked - this transparent sock was rapidly blocked, and HT appeared a few months later - Ray is clearly willing to sock. Images on HT's user page are all (obscure) photos uploaded by Ray to Commons. HT has also added a gallery of "Inmate Art" to the Central North Correctional Centre article - images uploaded by Ray. The smoking gun however, is this edit by Haiku Tea on Talk:London Arts Council, concerning a wake for Catherine Inculet (a Council member, along with Ray - HT has a sandboxed draft of a deleted bio on Inculet, and was presumably the creator of the original article) which is signed "Wayne Ray Carol Murphy Karen Chute Executors & friends". AndyTheGrump (talk) 16:28, 30 June 2015 (UTC)

It should probably be noted here that User:WayneRay is indefinitely blocked - with an instruction to 'Contact ArbCom before unblocking'. AndyTheGrump (talk) 18:55, 3 July 2015 (UTC)


 * I've just noticed that Haiku Tea gave a contact email address on their user page - for Ray's publishing house (HMS Press ). AndyTheGrump (talk) 15:15, 7 July 2015 (UTC)

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Clerk, CheckUser, and/or patrolling admin comments

 * I've asked ArbCom for a comment before I do anything else. Callanecc (talk • contribs • logs) 12:50, 13 July 2015 (UTC)
 * Especially given the edits to London Arts Council and Talk:London Arts Council. Also note Sock blocked and tagged. Closing. Callanecc (talk • contribs • logs) 14:25, 13 July 2015 (UTC)

Suspected sockpuppets



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User:WayneRay was banned by ArbCom and then globally locked by the WMF back in March/April of this year. WayneRay did have some sockpuppets (one can be seen here ). WayneRay's image uploads, particularly to Commons, were noted as being from the "Windfield Photographic Collection", which is apparently associated with Mr. Ray himself.

Back in 2007, User:Athrash uploaded the file File:Cotton1943 cropped.jpg, and tagged the informational template with all of the usual Wayne Ray photograph information, including "Windfield Photographic Collection", and noting the photographer as "C. Ray", exactly in the manner Mr. Ray would do (compare to an upload at Commons by Mr. Ray ). This information is highly esoteric and extremely unlikely to be known by anyone except WayneRay.

Athrash "coincidentally" reappeared after being gone for nearly two years, just a couple months after WayneRay's other accounts were globally locked, and this was to edit an article about a plant. WayneRay was well known over on Commons for categorizing photos on botany-related topics. The Master ---)Vote Saxon(--- 02:35, 30 August 2016 (UTC)

Comments by other users
''Accused parties may also comment/discuss in this section below. See Defending yourself against claims.''

Clerk, CheckUser, and/or patrolling admin comments
I've declined the CU request. The accounts are .--Bbb23 (talk) 12:53, 30 August 2016 (UTC)
 * Pinging and if we are lucky  here to see if they have information on this. Jo-Jo Eumerus (talk, contributions) 15:44, 7 September 2016 (UTC)


 * You say that Athrash reappeared [...] just a couple months after WayneRay's other accounts were globally locked. What are those "other accounts"? Can you list them?  Vanjagenije  (talk)  18:36, 14 September 2016 (UTC)
 * OK, his most recent active account on Commons is . The sockpuppet I know of here is User:Haiku_Tea. There's another connection: a fixation on Japanese art and poetry. The Master ---)Vote Saxon(--- 00:37, 16 September 2016 (UTC)


 * Closed with no action. The evidence here is insufficient to demonstrate a connection. Athrash has edited only one article in common with WayneRay, years apart, and none in common with the known sock. They have had regular years-long gaps in editing going back nearly 10 years. Their last return was almost a full year after Haiku Tea was blocked. And as far as I can tell the topic interests do not overlap. If anything, I would say this is conclusively not a sock. Ivanvector (Talk/Edits) 13:07, 21 October 2016 (UTC)