​SEC sues Elon Musk over refusal to testify in Twitter probe — X owner calls for 'overhaul' of bureaucratic agencies

The Securities and Exchange Commission filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk over his refusal to testify in its investigation of his acquisition of Twitter in 2022, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

The SEC requested that the court "compel Respondent Elon Musk to appear for investigative testimony pursuant to an SEC investigative subpoena," according to documents filed in a San Francisco federal court. Musk allegedly failed to appear to testify last month, as requested by the SEC.

The agency is probing whether Musk violated securities laws related to buying Twitter shares before purchasing the company. Bloomberg reported that Musk bought a 9.2% share in Twitter in March 2022. His stake in the company was reportedly disclosed to the SEC in April. According to SEC rules, most who purchase more than 5% of a publicly traded firm must report the purchase to the agency within 10 days, the outlet stated. The SEC is reviewing statements and disclosures regarding his stock transactions.

The investigation into Musk was launched in April 2022. Court filings noted that Musk provided the agency with hundreds of documents and testified for two half-day sessions in July 2022. The agency claims it needs additional testimony from Musk following its acquisition of "thousands of new documents," according to court filings.

"The SEC has followed all appropriate administrative steps required in seeking Musk's testimony. In the face of Musk's blatant refusal to comply with the SEC's subpoena, the SEC now asks the Court to intervene and compel Musk's compliance," the agency's lawsuit stated.

Alex Spiro, Musk's attorney, told Bloomberg, "The SEC has already taken Mr. Musk's testimony multiple times in this misguided investigation — enough is enough."

In September, Musk agreed to meet with the SEC but changed his mind two days before the scheduled interview, raising several objections regarding the investigation. The SEC proposed new dates and agreed to move the interview from San Francisco to Forth Worth, Texas, but Musk refused to meet, the court filings alleged.

In response to the SEC's lawsuit, Musk called for an "overhaul" of bureaucratic agencies.

"A comprehensive overhaul of these agencies is sorely needed, along with a commission to take punitive action against those individuals who have abused their regulatory power for personal and political gain," Musk wrote on X Thursday afternoon. "Can't wait for this to happen."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!