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Elon Musk's lawyer accused the SEC of orchestrating a 'vindictive' leak against his client. Musk said his lawyer was 'peeling back the first layer of the corruption onion.'

Kate Duffy
Updated ·2 min read
SpaceX founder Elon Musk addresses members of the media during a press conference announcing new developments of the Crew Dragon reusable spacecraft, at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California on October 10, 2019.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk.PHILIP PACHECO/AFP via Getty Images

  • Elon Musk's attorney accused at least one SEC staff member of leaking details from an investigation.

  • Alex Spiro didn't clarify which investigation or what information was purportedly leaked.

  • "This is just peeling back the first layer of the corruption onion," Musk tweeted.

A lawyer for Tesla CEO Elon Musk has accused the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of leaking information about an apparent investigation into his client.

In a letter to District Judge Alison Nathan, dated Monday, Musk's lawyer, Alex Spiro, claims the SEC orchestrated a "vindictive" leak because it was "out to retaliate" against Musk and Tesla for "exercising their First Amendment rights."

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On Tuesday, Musk tweeted: "This is just peeling back the first layer of the corruption onion. Stay tuned…"

Last week, Musk accused the SEC of "endless, unfounded investigations" into himself and Tesla, as well as withholding a $40 million settlement from the company's investors.

The dispute began in 2018 when the SEC accused Musk of making "false and misleading" statements to investors after he tweeted that he had "funding secured" to take Tesla private at $420 a share. In a settlement announced in September that year, Musk and Tesla each agreed to pay $20 million to the SEC to be distributed among "harmed" investors.

In his letter to Judge Nathan, Spiro didn't say which investigation the purported leak related to, or what information was purportedly leaked.

Spiro said: "This leak is emblematic of the vindictive, improper conduct that occasioned my letter: The SEC is retaliating against Mr Musk and Tesla, without answering to the constraints of principle or law in so doing."

He said that "at least one member of the SEC staff responded by leaking certain information regarding its investigation" after he filed a letter with Judge Nathan last week, in which he complained about the agency's conduct.

Spiro and the SEC didn't immediately respond to Insider's requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider