
Tesla is under the microscope of two new federal investigations, as revealed by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday. Authorities from the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's Office and the Securities and Exchange Commission are reportedly examining the company's use of resources pertaining to a secretive project in Texas that is believed to be for the personal use of CEO Elon Musk. The probes would also evaluate if Tesla had misled the public about the range of its electric car batteries.
Reports by The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday indicate that Tesla is presently under investigation by two different federal entities. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York is looking into whether company funds were misused by or for the personal benefit of CEO Elon Musk. According to the report, investigators are trying to ascertain the amount spent to plan and build a glass house in the Austin, Texas area to possibly use for personal reasons. Additionally, Manhattan federal prosecutors are reportedly gauging if the battery range of Tesla electric cars has been purposely misrepresented.
In its last financial report, Tesla mentioned that it routinely responds to requests for information from national and foreign authorities – including agencies such as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the National Transportation Safety Board, and the SEC – and adheres to the subpoenas and investigations they initiate. It had to make a revised settlement with the SEC in September 2018 that led to the removal of Musk as chairman of Tesla for three years and necessitated the review of any tweets by legally-approved personnel prior to publication. The SEC eventually subpoenaed Tesla concerning its governance and compliance related to the settlement agreement. Moreover, the DOJ asked for documents in regards to Autopilot and FSD features, while the NHTSA is close to completing an evaluation on possible safety defects in the Autopilot system.
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