A US Federal judge has mandated that CEO of Tesla Inc. and SpaceX, Elon Musk, testify amid a US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation. This concerns his purchase of the social media platform Twitter in 2022, which has since been rebranded as X.
The SEC is trying to determine if Musk, or any other individual, conducted securities fraud during 2022. The fraud would have involved buying Twitter stock ahead of Musk's acquisition of the company.
This directive was issued in response to Musk's failure to attend a court-ordered testimony in September and his refusal to attend a subsequent rescheduled interview. A Federal judge in December had previously instructed Musk to adhere to an SEC subpoena and testify again in its examination of his takeover of Twitter.
Musk and his legal representation have reportedly labeled the SEC's investigation as groundless, arguing that it seeks irrelevant information. They also claimed that the SEC's subpoena was tantamount to harassment.
However, in a recent court filing in California, federal magistrate judge Laurel Beeler stated that the SEC's investigation is within its authority. She added that their subpoena is definite and seeks information relevant to their examination. According to the court, the subpoena is authorized under the Exchange Act.
Both Musk and the SEC now have one week to agree on a date and location for his testimony.
Musk finalized his acquisition of Twitter, a deal valued approximately at $44 billion, in October 2022. Following the launch of the SEC's investigation, Musk testified in two half-day sessions in July 2022. Since then, the SEC has collected thousands of new documents from different sources and is reportedly seeking further information from Musk.
