SEC threatens sanctions against Elon Musk if he continues blowing off depositions

The Securities and Exchange Commission has asked a federal judge to issue sanctions against tech billionaire Elon Musk if he continues blowing off depositions about his acquisition of Twitter, now known as X, reported CNBC.

According to the report, the SEC "has been investigating whether Musk or anyone else working with him committed securities fraud in 2022 as the Tesla CEO sold shares in his automaker and shored up a stake in Twitter ... In May, the court ordered Musk to appear for a deposition by the financial regulators regarding the Twitter deal."

However, per the SEC, “Musk has now failed to appear before the SEC twice: first in September 2023, in defiance of a lawful administrative subpoena, and last week, in defiance of a clear court order.”

Specifically, the SEC wants the court to hold Musk in civil contempt if these evasion tactics continue.

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An attorney for Musk blasted this demand, saying “such drastic action would be inappropriate,” and that Musk rescheduled the deposition as a result of a legitimate emergency.

Musk in recent years has taken a hard right political turn and endorsed former President Donald Trump. He is even reportedly under consideration for an advisory role in a second Trump administration.

Musk first acquired the social media platform with the stated intent of promoting free speech, though censorship has reportedly intensified under his leadership, skewing against reporters critical of him.

Musk is also facing a lawsuit from the Oklahoma Firefighters Pension and Retirement System, which accuses him of improperly concealing his strategic moves to purchase Twitter in a way that disadvantaged other shareholders.