Kung Fu Panda court case dismissed as claimant charged with fraud for 'tracing drawings' from colouring book

He originally suggested a $12 million settlement, which was rejected by Dreamworks

(DreamWorks )

In 2011, Jayme Gordon took out a lawsuit against Dreamworks after claiming he invented the titular character in their animated film series Kung Fu Panda.

The court case has been ongoing ever since, costing the studio $3m (£2m) to defend, but has now been dismissed after Gordon, from Massachusetts, was charged with fraud by prosecutors, according to Reuters.

They allege that he traced his ‘original’ cartoon panda from numerous sources, including a Lion King colouring book published in 1996.

The 51-year-old then backdated the drawings, which he proceeded to use as evidence against Dreamworks.

Authorities have reportedly alleged that Gordon’s idea was to make it look like the film was based on these drawings and that he made up the story, called Panda Power.

They then claimed that Gordon had deleted key evidence from his computer, evidence that would have been necessary to show in court.

He originally suggested a $12 million (£8 million) settlement, which was rejected by Dreamworks.

Gordon has been charged with four counts of fraud and three counts of perjury, the most serious charge could put him in jail for up to 20 years.

"Mr Gordon went to great lengths to orchestrate and maintain this fraudulent scheme, trying to take credit for ideas he did not come up with," said Boston FBI agent Harold Shaw.

"This case demonstrates the FBI's commitment to root out individuals who try to steal ideas and information from hard-working American companies.”

Gordon’s lawyer, Robert Griffin has said his client “maintains his innocence”.

A sequel to Kung Fu Panda was released in 2011, and will be followed by Kung Fu Panda 3 this March in the UK.