The founder of electric semitruck maker Nikola Motor is standing trial on fraud charges related to statements he made about the company's technology and products.
Milton is facing two counts of securities fraud and two counts of wire fraud, all related to statements he made about Nikola's business while he was chairman and CEO of the company. If convicted, he could face up to 25 years in federal prison.
Nikola itself isn't facing charges in this case. The SEC brought related civil charges against the company last year, but that case was settled in December after Nikola agreed to pay aHere's what Milton is charged with: Milton said that the company's first semitruck prototype, called the Nikola One, was "fully functional" – but it wasn't.
Separately, Milton claimed that Nikola had engineered and built an electric pickup truck called the Badger, entirely on its own, after years of work. But, prosecutors say, the Badger was little more than "concept sketches and renderings" at the time of Milton's initial statements.
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