Nikola Founder Milton Faces Charges He Lied to Support Stock

Nikola Corp. founder and former chairman Trevor Milton has been charged by prosecutors with making false statements to investors in the electric-vehicle startup. The charges follow a difficult year for the company, which went public and almost immediately faced questions about its production and technology.

Milton, 39, who stepped down from the company last year, is charged with misleading investors from November 2019 until around September 2020, according to a criminal indictment unsealed Thursday by federal prosecutors in New York. He voluntarily surrendered to federal custody and was freed by a judge on $100 million bail after pleading not guilty. The bail was secured by a 2,700-acre ranch in Utah owned by Milton, who promised to limit his travel and not to contact investors.