KEY POINTS
President Donald Trump pardoned Nikola founder Trevor Milton.
Milton was convicted in October 2022 of crimes related to defrauding investors with misrepresentations about the success of the electric- and hydrogen-powered truck maker.
The former CEO was sentenced to four years in prison, but has been free pending appeal of his conviction in New York federal court.
Nikola filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in February.
In a press release Thursday, Milton said, "This pardon is not just about me — it's about every American who has been railroaded by the government, and unfortunately, that's a lot of people."
Milton said that there are "striking similarities" between his case "and those brought against President Trump."
"It is no wonder why trust and confidence in the Justice Department has eroded to nothing," Milton said in the press release.
"I wish judges would stop believing whatever the prosecutors feed them so Americans could trust the justice system again," he said. "Until that happens, our justice system will continue to erode until there is nothing left."
Trump's pardon of Milton, if confirmed, would erase his criminal conviction and the sentence, which included a $1 million fine.
"Milton made false claims regarding nearly all aspects of Nikola's business," the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office said at the time of his indictment.
Those included false claims "that the company had early success in creating a 'fully functioning' semi-truck prototype known as the 'Nikola One,' when Milton knew the prototype was inoperable."
The office also said Milton had made "false and misleading statements that Nikola had engineered and built an electric- and hydrogen-powered pickup truck known as 'the Badger' from the 'ground up' using Nikola's parts and technology, when Milton knew that was not true."
Last fall, a judge confirmed a nearly $168 million arbitration award against Milton for his misleading statements about Nikola.
https://www.cnbc.com/amp/2025/03/28/trump-pardons-nikola-trevor-milton-ceo-securities-fraud-electric-vehicle.html
