A co-founder of the firm behind Truth Social says Trump retaliated against another exec who refused to gift some of his shares to Melania
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Will Wilkerson, co-founder of Trump’s media company, filed a complaint with the SEC in August.
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Wilkerson told the Washington Post a number of allegations about the company.
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An email obtained by the Post showed that another co-founder believed Trump was acting in retaliation against him.
A co-founder of Trump Media & Technology Group, the company behind Truth Social, says former President Donald Trump pushed another executive to give Melania Trump some of his stock and reacted after the request was denied. . The Washington Post report is good.
Will Wilkerson, who filed a lawsuit against the company with the SEC in August, said in an article posted on Saturday by the outlet. The Post, which obtained the documents filed with Wilkerson’s complaint, detailed the allegations of corporate intrusion and potentially illegal activities.
According to the SEC complaint, Trump received a 90% stake when the company was formed. But Wilkerson told the Post that he was with his co-founder Andy Litinsky in October 2021, when the latter received a call from Trump. This time around, the company recently reached a merger deal that would catapult the value of its shares. Wilkerson said the former president asked Litinsky to donate some of his stock to Melania Trump.
Wilkerson told the Post that Litinsky objected, explaining that the gift would translate into a tax he wouldn’t be able to pay: “Trump didn’t care. He said, ‘Do what you have to do. ‘”
Litinsky, a former competitor of “The Apprentice,” was fired from the company’s board five months later. Wilkerson believed there was revenge. According to a March email obtained by the Post, Litinsky also admitted that she reacted against him.
According to a screenshot in the email published by the Post, “President Trump has repeatedly asked for the past 2 months for me to donate my TMTG capital to Melania Trump.” “As I have repeatedly informed them, I have earned this equity and the ‘donation’ of capital to Melania Trump will also be a taxable event that I cannot pay taxes on.”
Litinsky also claimed that Trump threatened to “blow up the company” if his demands were not met, believing Trump was now “backfire” on him and according to a screenshot of the email. He will seek legal advice.
A Trump spokesperson did not immediately respond to an insider’s request for comment. Litinsky did not immediately respond to an insider’s request for comment sent through her consulting and production company, ZideLitinsky Media.
In a statement to Insider, a representative of the Trump Media & Technology Group criticized the Post’s reports and touted the successes of Truth Social.
“As president of TMTG, President Trump appointed Devin Nunes CEO to create a culture of compliance and a world-class team to drive Truth Social,” the statement read. Launched on Apple and Google App Stores It attracted millions of users and “performed several feature updates”.
“Ignoring these findings, the Washington Post ran an article with intentionally false and defamatory statements and other fabricated concoctions,” the statement continues. The statement did not directly comment on the specific allegations.
Wilkerson, who serves as the outlet’s senior vice president, said he was fired Thursday after speaking to the Post, the outlet reported. Wilkerson’s attorneys did not immediately respond to an insider’s request for comment, but told the Post he was cooperating. SEC and New York Prosecutors Investigate Trump Media,
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