Will Wilkerson, who was one of the original founders of Truth Social, Trump’s social media platform that was established shortly after the former president’s permanent suspension from Twitter, was an executive at Trump Media & Technology Group, which operates Truth Social.
Wilkerson filed a whistleblower complaint with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in August, and also shared internal documents with The Washington Post, which reported on his complaint on Saturday.
According to the newspaper, Wilkerson alleges that Trump Media violated securities laws and that Trump pressured executives to hand over their shares to his wife, Melania.
Trump allegedly threatened to "blow up the company" if his demands were not met, according to an email Wilkerson and his attorneys shared with The Washington Post.
Wilkerson and his attorneys also allege that Trump Media’s bid to raise money via an investment vehicle known as a special purpose acquisition company relied on "fraudulent misrepresentations … in violation of federal securities laws."
Wilkerson also told The Washington Post that "bitter infighting, technical failures and a chaotic jockeying for power among Trump allies" had undermined Trump Media’s potential and "left some employees crying at their desks."
Wilkerson was fired from his job as a senior vice president of operations at Trump Media on Thursday, after he spoke to The Washington Post, the newspaper said, adding that the company had cited Wilkerson’s "unauthorized disclosures."
Trump was banned from Twitter and Facebook* following the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021. The platforms deemed that his activities in relation to the event violated their policies. The former president later launched a new social network Truth Social to fight Big Tech censorship and protect the right of free speech and expression.
*Facebook and its parent company Meta are banned in Russia as extremist, terrorist organizations.