Dallas Tesla CEO Elon Musk wants to gather more evidence on the controversial issue of the number of fake Twitter accounts before the trial for the billion-dollar takeover, according to an insider. Musk is accusing Twitter of hiding key witnesses in the legal battle over whether he needs to complete a $44 billion takeover of the company, according to people familiar with the allegations.
In a letter filed under seal on Tuesday, Musk’s law firm asked the judge in charge to force Twitter to release the names of the employees responsible for calculating the share of bot and spam accounts so that Musk’s defense team could question them. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.
The number of fake user accounts on Twitter has become a central issue in the legal dispute over whether Musk has to take over the short messaging service. Twitter and a lawyer for Musk initially declined to comment.
Musk called off the deal last month. He argued, among other things, that the number of fake accounts was greater than the order of less than five percent specified by the company. Twitter has sued Musk over his withdrawal. The trial is scheduled to start on October 17.
