Andrew Left on Nikola, Trevor Milton
Nikola Corp. founder Trevor Milton has been indicted on two counts of securities fraud and one count of wire fraud by the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office for allegedly misleading investors in the electric truck company.
Milton stepped down as executive chairman of the startup last September following a scathing report from short-seller Hindenberg Research that made several charges of fraud, some of which the company admitted held merit.
Shares tumbled on the developments.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NKLA | NIKOLA CORP. | 12.96 | -1.23 | -8.67% |
Milton was accused in the indictment of making false and misleading statements through social media and television, print and podcast interviews about the company’s product and technology development.
Shares of Nikola dropped sharply Thursday morning following the announcement of the indictment.
“Trevor Milton resigned from Nikola on September 20, 2020 and has not been involved in the company’s operations or communications since that time. Today’s government actions are against Mr. Milton individually, and not against the company,” Nikola said in a statement.
“Nikola has cooperated with the government throughout the course of its inquiry. We remain committed to our previously announced milestones and timelines and are focused on delivering Nikola Tre battery-electric trucks later this year from the company’s manufacturing facilities.”
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Milton, who was an outspoken fixture on Twitter during his tenure running the company, has stayed out of the public eye since his departure, but retains a large equity stake in the company.
Nikola is developing several hydrogen and battery-powered commercial trucks and had planned to build a pickup truck in partnership with General Motors, but that deal fell through after Milton’s resignation.
Milton is expected to make an appearance in court Thursday afternoon.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
