“From approximately November 2019 through September 2020, Milton’s
statements in tweets and media appearances, individually and taken together, painted a picture of Nikola that diverged widely from its then-current reality. Milton sold a version of Nikola not as it was – an early-stage company with a novel idea to commercialize yet-to-be-proven products and technology – but rather as a trail-blazing company that had already achieved many groundbreaking and game-changing milestones,” according to the SEC.
On the other hand, the Manhattan U.S. Attorney’s Office alleged that Milton “promoted a false and exaggerated narrative that Nikola was a first mover in the zero-emissions-trucking business.” He allegedly repeatedly made false and misleading statements about the company to boost and support its stock price.
Milton committed his scheme to defraud investors starting at least in or around November 2019 until around September 2020. A short-seller, Hindenburg Research released a report that accused Milton of fraud. Milton stepped down as executive chairman of Nikola. The allegations prompted investigations by the SEC and the Department of Justice (DOJ). The results of those investigations led to the filing of a civil and a criminal complaint against the Nikola founder.
