Interesting detective work here Ash, I couldn't possibly say who is behind it as it could be from multiple directions.
All I can say is that Steemit does need a powerful 'whitehat' to fight the bad actors that hurt the platform for all. But then again, on the list are a bunch of people I would never have figured to have been doing - too much- wrongs here.
It's a bit messy isn't it, but I do agree that a large 'whitehat' account sounds best - seems that the hat can be swapped quite easily though depending on mood!