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President Donald Trump personally called Trevor Milton to tell him a pardon was coming. During that call, Trump mentioned that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had supported Milton’s case. Shortly after, the pardon was issued, wiping clean a four-year prison sentence and more than $660 million in restitution obligations.
Milton, the founder and former CEO of electric and hydrogen vehicle company Nikola Corporation, had been convicted in October 2022 on three counts of securities and wire fraud. His crime: misleading investors about the state of his company’s technology. The pardon, issued on or around March 27, 2025, was described as “full and unconditional.”
The money trail
Milton and his wife donated between $3.2 million and $3.6 million to Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign. They also contributed approximately $750,000 to $1 million to a political action committee linked to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Trump told Milton during their phone call that RFK Jr. had backed his case, according to a Reuters investigation. The timing and sequence of events, large donations followed by high-level advocacy followed by a presidential pardon, paints a picture that even the most generous observer would struggle to call coincidental.
Milton himself described the outcome as a “pardon of innocence.” He framed his entire legal saga as politically motivated persecution, arguing that his troubles stemmed from his support for Trump.
What Milton actually did
Nikola burst onto the scene promising to revolutionize heavy trucking with hydrogen fuel cell and electric technology. Milton was the charismatic frontman, making bold claims about the company’s capabilities to investors and the public. He was found guilty in October 2022 on three counts of securities and wire fraud, with the conviction centered on statements Milton made that misrepresented where Nikola’s technology actually stood.
In 2023, he was sentenced to four years in federal prison. The restitution obligations piled on top of that exceeded $660 million, reflecting the scale of investor losses tied to his misrepresentations.
Nikola filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2025. By September 2025, the SEC dropped its civil enforcement actions against Milton entirely.
Why this matters beyond one man’s pardon
Milton was convicted of lying to investors. Those investors lost real money. Nikola’s bankruptcy made those losses permanent for many. And the person responsible for those lies now walks free, with no criminal record and no financial obligation to the people he defrauded.
This case does not involve crypto assets or tokens. But the dynamics at play are relevant to crypto investors, who operate in markets where fraud allegations, SEC enforcement actions, and questions about regulatory capture are constant background noise.
Milton spent roughly $4 million on political contributions. He was relieved of more than $660 million in restitution obligations. Milton has signaled interest in a business comeback. With the SEC enforcement actions dropped and his conviction pardoned, there is nothing legally stopping him.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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