Nikola founder Trevor Milton faces fraud charges — Transcript

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1. 0:00today we announce charges against trevor
2. 0:03milton
3. 0:04former ceo and executive chair of nikola
4. 0:07corporation
5. 0:09we charge that milton engaged in a
6. 0:12scheme to enrich himself by making false
7. 0:14and misleading statements
8. 0:16to retail investors about the
9. 0:18development of products and technology
10. 0:20at nikola corporation
11. 0:24could be driven when in fact the closest
12. 0:27that ever came to driving
13. 0:28was when a group of nikola engineers
14. 0:31milton
15. 0:32also claimed that nikola had developed
16. 0:34technology and parts
17. 0:35when in fact those items had been
18. 0:37developed by outside suppliers
19. 0:40and other automakers milton claimed that
20. 0:43nikola was producing hydrogen
21. 0:45when in fact it was not and milton
22. 0:48claimed that the company had binding
23. 0:50orders
24. 0:50for semi-trucks that represented
25. 0:53billions of dollars in revenue
26. 0:55when in fact most of those reservations
27. 0:58could be cancelled at any time
28. 0:59or if it were for a truck that nicola
29. 1:02did not plan to produce
30. 1:03in the near term and has not produced to
31. 1:06this day
32. 1:07milton claimed falsely that nicola had
33. 1:10developed
34. 1:11batteries the conduct we allege occurred
35. 1:14between november 2019
36. 1:16when milton took steps to take nicola
37. 1:18public in september 2020
38. 1:20when milton resigned during that period
39. 1:24milton brazenly and repeatedly made
40. 1:27false and misleading claims
41. 1:28about the status of nicholas technology
42. 1:31he made those claims on twitter
43. 1:34instagram on podcasts and on tv
44. 1:37retail investors were listening to
45. 1:39milton
46. 1:40his state and statements helped convince
47. 1:42them to buy nicholas stock
48. 1:45but what they heard him say was not true
49. 1:48in fact as he well knew nicola was
50. 1:51acquiring those parts
51. 1:52from third parties this is a very
52. 1:54straightforward case
53. 1:57milton told lies to generate popular
54. 1:59demand for nicholas stock
55. 2:01beginning at least in or about march
56. 2:032020
57. 2:04when nikola announced that stock would
58. 2:06become publicly listed
59. 2:08milton became increasingly preoccupied
60. 2:11with
61. 2:11keeping nicholas stock price high the
62. 2:14vast majority of those orders could be
63. 2:16canceled at any time
64. 2:18and were for a truck nicholas