Trevor Milton, who founded the electric vehicle start-up Nikola, received a presidential pardon from Donald Trump, the White House confirmed this past Friday. Milton was initially sentenced to a four-year prison term for misleading investors by overstating the capabilities of his company’s technology. His pardon might cancel the large restitution amounts sought from him by prosecutors on behalf of duped investors.
Milton, now 42, had not served his sentence as he was appealing, and shortly before the November election, he and his wife had contributed over $1.8 million to a campaign fund aiming at Trump’s re-election, as reported by the Federal Election Commission. During Milton’s trial, it was disclosed by prosecutors that a promotional video purportedly showing a prototype truck operating independently was, in reality, a non-operational Nikola rolled downhill to create the illusion of functionality.
Milton announced his pardon on social media, expressing deep gratitude towards Trump, commending the president for “courage in standing up for what is right.” While the White House confirmed the pardon, no formal announcement appeared on its website. In a press encounter, Trump justified his decision to pardon Milton as being “highly recommended by many people,” contending that Milton’s prosecution had political motives tied to his support for Trump.
Trump claimed that any allegations against Milton stemmed from his public support for Trump’s presidency, describing the prosecutorial attempts of the Southern District of New York as driven by personal malice. Milton was legally defended by attorneys with Trump affiliations, Marc Mukasey and Brad Bondi, adding to the intricacies of the trial.
On the same day, Trump commuted the sentence of Carlos Watson, co-founder of Ozy Media, who was slated to serve nearly ten years for financial conspiracy. Trump’s exercise of his pardon powers was made evident shortly after his second term began, with notable clemency actions taking place, including pardons related to participants in the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot and Ross Ulbricht, a former Silk Road operator.
Nikola itself had a challenging trajectory, once praised as a promising start-up, its reputation and stock plummeted amidst fraud allegations leading to its Chapter 11 bankruptcy filling earlier this year. Milton’s fraudulent actions were likened to cons by prosecutors, noting the discrepancy between his claims and reality, with allegations of using another company’s truck branded with Nikola’s logo as a false representation of innovation.
A former CEO of Nikola, called to testify, remarked that Milton was prone to exaggeration when courting investors. Nikola sustained significant damage following Milton’s 2020 resignation and the subsequent decline in stock value. Although the company paid a hefty settlement to the SEC in 2021, it did not admit to any wrongdoing as part of the agreement.
In response to the pardon, the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York offered no comment. Previously, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams had sternly pronounced Milton a serial deceiver of investors, signaling broader warning to those in corporate leadership against fraud. Finally, in a related move, Trump pardoned three cryptocurrency entrepreneurs, Arthur Hayes, Benjamin Delo, and Samuel Reed, who faced penalties after admitting to flouts of financial regulations at the BITMEX exchange.