05/30/2026
"A jury found him guilty. A judge gave him four years in prison and ordered him to repay $690 million to the investors he defrauded. His company went bankrupt. His trucks barely worked.
Then Donald Trump called him personally — and made it all go away.
Trevor Milton founded Nikola, an electric and hydrogen truck startup that promised to revolutionize transportation. Prosecutors said he lied about nearly everything — doctoring videos to hide the trucks' flaws, rebranding a GM vehicle as a Nikola prototype, and misleading investors about the company’s technology and progress.
A New York jury convicted him in October 2022. He got four years in prison and a $690 million restitution order. The company later filed for bankruptcy. Fewer than 1,000 trucks were ever built.
In October 2024, while awaiting his appeal, Milton donated over $900,000 to a Trump-aligned PAC.
Five months later, Trump personally called Milton to tell him the pardon was signed.
“I am free,” Milton said in a video. “The prosecutors can no longer hurt me.”
Trump claimed Milton “did nothing wrong” and was targeted because of his political support. He alleged the case was moved from Utah to New York to ensure a guilty verdict.
One more detail: Milton’s defense attorney was Brad Bondi — brother of Pam Bondi, now U.S. Attorney General.
That $690 million restitution? The pardon wipes it out, too. The investors who lost everything have no recourse."