On Wednesday, January 10, 2024, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was headquartered in Washington, DC, the United States.
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SEC indicts former CEO of merged blank-check company Trump Mediaaccused him of lying about his company’s plans to merge with Donald Trump’s social media startup.
The commission said Patrick Orlando allegedly lied in public filings by saying his company, Digital World Acquisition Corp., had not contacted any possible merger targets and had no specific merger plans. said in the lawsuit The lawsuit was filed Wednesday night in federal court in Washington, D.C.
“Orlando knew these statements were false,” the SEC’s civil complaint alleges.
The SEC said “he personally had numerous lengthy discussions with representatives of Trump Media” and that he had been targeting the company “for months.”
The SEC asked the court to force Orlando to relinquish “all ill-gotten gains” resulting from his alleged violations and impose civil penalties and a permanent injunction barring him from engaging in such conduct.
Orlando and Trump Media did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Trump Media and Digital World completed a lengthy public merger in March, allowing the company behind the Truth Social platform to list on Nasdaq under the ticker DJT.
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