The charges were outlined in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court that did not implicate Trump or his media company, which owns his Truth Social platform, in any way.According to the indictment pertaining to the media company, the men were invited to invest in the special purpose acquisition company, Digital World Acquisition Corp., and were provided confidential information that a potential target of DWAC and another acquisition company, Benessere Capital Acquisition Corp.
"Insider trading is not easy money," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in a release. "It's cheating. It's a bad bet. Because my Office, the Southern District of New York, is watching. And we're working quickly to investigate and prosecute anyone who corrupts our financial markets. And we'll keep at it as long as it takes. You can bet on that."
According to the indictment, Garelick was given a seat on DWAC's board of directors and had access to confidential information. It said he then shared that information with his co-conspirators. In early 2021, representatives of Trump Media, including Trump, began communicating with principles of Benessere about potentially merging to take Trump Media public, the indictment said.