September 15, 2020 - An investor in shares of Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona over alleged violations of Federal Securities Laws by Nikola Corporation f/k/a VectoIQ Acquisition Corp. in connection with certain allegedly false and misleading statements made between March 3, 2020 and October 15, 2020.

Phoenix, AZ based Nikola Corporation operates as an integrated zero emissions transportation systems provider.
On September 10, 2020, a report was issued titled: Nikola: How to parlay an Ocean of Lies into a Partnership with the Largest Auto OEM in America. In that report, Hindenburg claimed that it gathered extensive evidence-including recorded phone calls, text messages, private emails, and behind-the-scenes photographs detailing dozens of false statements by the Company's founder Trevor Milton.”
Subsequently, on September 15, 2020, dropped further Tuesday after another report said the Justice Department has joined the Securities and Exchange Commission in looking into allegations that the electric-truck maker has misled investors. The report, which cited people familiar with the matter, said the probe was being handled by the Manhattan U.S. attorney's office, working in conjunction with the securities regulators, which has reportedly initiated its own probe. The stock closed at $32.83, down $2.96 per share.

On September 21, 2020, Trevor Milton stepped down as executive chairman effective immediately and was replaced by Stephen Girsky, the former General Motors vice chairman who oversaw Nikola’s stock listing and helped broker their partnership.

Shares of Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA) declined from $93.99 per share on June 9, 2020 to $24.05 per share on September 21, 2020.

According to the complaint the plaintiff alleges on behalf of purchasers of Nikola Corporation (NASDAQ: NKLA, NKLAW), f/k/a VectoIQ Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: VTIQ, VTIQW, VTIQU) common shares between March 3, 2020 and October 15, 2020, that the defendants violated Federal Securities Laws.

More specifically, the plaintiff claims that between March 3, 2020 and October 15, 2020, the defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that VectoIQ did not engage in proper due diligence regarding its merger with Nikola, that Nikola overstated its “in-house” design, manufacturing, and testing capabilities, that Nikola overstated its hydrogen production capabilities, that as a result, Nikola overstated its ability to lower the cost of hydrogen fuel, that Nikola founder and Executive Chairman, Trevor Milton, tweeted a misleading “test” video of the Company’s Nikola Two truck, that the work experience and background of key Nikola employees, including Mr. Milton, had been overstated and obfuscated, that Nikola did not have five Tre trucks completed, and that as a result, defendants’ public statements were materially false and/or misleading at all relevant times. According to the suit, these true details were disclosed by a market research firm.