Trump Media Ousted Co-Founder From Board After He Refused To Sell Some Shares To Melania: Report

Will Wilkerson, one of the first employees of Trump Media and Technology Group, has filed a whistleblower complaint about the company and shared some details with the Washington Post.

Among Wilkerson's disclosures was Trump getting back at TMTG co-founder Andy Litinsky for not agreeing to give some of his shares in the company to former first lady Melania, the WaPo report said.

See Also: Trump's Adult Sons Reportedly Sought Larger Stakes In His Media Company Despite Little Involvement

The talks between Trump and Litinsky happened in October after TMTG announced a deal to merge with Special Purpose Acquisition Company Digital World Acquisition Corp. DWAC. The SPAC deal meant the stake Trump asked for was worth millions of dollars, Wilkerson told the Post.

At that time, Trump owned about 90% of TMTG’s shares in exchange for the use of his name and small involvement, with no money involved.

Litinsky, according to the report, tried to dodge by saying the gift to Melania might require him to foot a huge tax bill, which wasn’t affordable for him. Trump was not in listening mode and said, “Do whatever you need to do,” it added.

The TMTG co-founder had to pay the price for refusing Trump, and in about five months, he was abruptly removed from the company’s board, the report said.

Wilkerson and his attorneys shared with the Post Litinsky’s email to the SEC, in which he complained that Trump threatened to “blow up the company” if his demands weren’t met.

Price Action: Digital World closed Friday's session at $17.49, down 4.43%, according to Benzinga Pro data.

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