Trump tried to shake down the co-founder of his media company to get Melania Trump paid, but the guy said no, was booted off the board, and then gave evidence of fraud to the SEC.
Will Wilkerson, then an executive at former president Donald Trump’s start-up Trump Media & Technology Group, was at a Fort Lauderdale, Fla., coffee shop with company co-founder Andy Litinsky last October when Trump called Litinsky with a question: Would he give up some of his shares to Trump’s wife, Melania?
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The email — one of hundreds of previously unreported company messages, documents, photos and audio recordings that Wilkerson has provided to the SEC in connection with a whistleblower submission — reveals a stunning portrait of the animosity that has built up inside Trump Media since its high-profile debut last year.
Trump tried to shakedown one of his business partners to get his wife what was described as a small fortune. The partner refused, so Trump kicked him off of the board. The business partner then went to the SEC as a whistleblower with a whole trove of evidence, and Donald Trump has a whole new problem.
Trump owns 90% of the shares in the media company, so if he wanted his wife to have an interest in the company, he could have given her some of his shares, but the media company was never about running a media company. It is a con that is designed to raise investor cash.
The shady company set up immediately got the attention of the federal government, and an investigation was launched. Thanks to Trump’s business partner, that investigation now has a whole lot of evidence provided by someone on the inside.
All because the Trumps saw a new con and wanted a piece of the action.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
