Founder of Tesla rival Nikola found guilty
A US jury has found Trevor Milton, the founder of Tesla competitor Nikola, guilty. The former CEO of the company is said to have deliberately misled investors in order to artificially inflate the share price. He faces up to 20 years in prison.
Back in 2021, a US court sued Trevor Milton, founder of electric truck maker Nikola, in three counts of securities fraud and misleading investors. He has now been found guilty of one count of securities fraud and two counts of wire fraud.
The court acquitted him of a serious charge of securities fraud. Nevertheless, he faces up to 20 years in prison. This in turn corresponds to the efforts of the US Department of Justice to want to take tougher action against white-collar crime.
Nikola was worth more than Ford at one point
In June 2020, Nikola was worth around 35 billion US dollars on the stock exchange – and at times more than carmaker Ford. At the time, the company had not delivered a single vehicle.
In September 2020, the investment company Hindenburg Research again has one report published, accusing Nikola and his leadership of fraud and lying. The share of the electric truck manufacturer then lost rapidly in value.
Numerous attempts at justification came to nothing, so that founder Trevor Milton resigned. The company itself was not charged, but had to answer to the US Securities and Exchange Commission and ultimately agree to a settlement and a $125 million fine.
Founder Trevor Milton found guilty of fraud
Meanwhile, charges have been brought against the divorced CEO. The jury has now found him guilty. Like the news agency Bloomberg reported, prosecutors argued that Milton persuaded numerous retail investors to buy Nikola stock by making false statements.
For example, he made misleading and exaggerated statements about the company’s capabilities via Twitter, in interviews and podcasts. Deputy US Attorney Jordan Estes spoke of “one lie after the other”.
Meanwhile, Trevor Milton remains innocent and wants to keep fighting. “I haven’t done anything wrong,” Milton said outside the courthouse. The sentence should be loud Bloomberg to be announced on January 27, 2023.
Also interesting:
