New Delhi: A US court has acquitted Elon Musk of a class-action securities fraud charge over his tweets about taking Tesla private. As CNBC reports, jurors deliberated for nearly two hours before reaching a verdict that was called “frustrating” by Nicholas Porritt, partner at Levy & Korsinski, the firm representing Tesla shareholders in the class action.
Musk tweeted that he “deeply appreciates the jury’s unanimous finding”. “Fraud cannot be made out on the basis of consideration,” his lead attorney Alex Spiro argued before the jury on Friday. ,Also read: GST Council meeting on February 18; Pan masala, tax on gutka companies, online gaming top agenda,
Musk’s controversial 2018 tweets on taking Tesla private have come back to haunt him and he stands to lose billions. The plaintiffs have argued that Musk’s tweets about taking Tesla private, in which he said he had “financing secured,” caused him millions of dollars in damages. ,ALSO READ: Mastercard’s NFT product head Satwik Sethi resigns citing abuse and emotional pain,
Musk previously admitted in a US court that he had ignored his advisers and investors in 2018 by tweeting about Tesla securing funding. In August 2018, he tweeted: “Looking at taking Tesla private for $420. Funding secured.”
“Shareholders can either sell at 420 or hold the shares and go private,” he said. The infamous tweet cost him his role as Tesla’s chairman.
The August 2018 tweets resulted in Musk and Tesla reaching a settlement with the US SEC on fraud charges. The settlement included $40 million in penalties, split equally between the company and Musk, and removed Musk as chairman of the Tesla board.