The Securities and Exchange Commission has sued the former CEO of the merged blank check company Trump Mediaaccusing him of lying about his firm’s plans to merge with Donald Trumpa social media startup.
Patrick Orlando allegedly lied in public filings when he said his company, Digital World Acquisition Corp., had no contact with any potential merger targets and had no specific merger plans. said in his claim filed in federal court in Washington on Tuesday.
“Orlando knew these statements were false,” the SEC’s civil complaint said.
The SEC claimed that he had “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 compel Orlando to disgorge “all ill-gotten gains” resulting from the alleged violations, civil penalties and a permanent injunction barring him from engaging in this conduct.
Orlando and Trump Media did not immediately respond to CNBC’s requests for comment.
Trump Media and Digital World completed their long-term public merger in March, allowing the company behind the Truth Social platform to trade on the Nasdaq under the stock symbol DJT.