Thread by @enn_nafnlaus

For a blast from the past, anyone remember Martin Tripp, the guy who fed internal Tesla data to Linette Lopez, tried to frame a coworker, was accused by an anonymous caller of threatening to shoot up GF1, and is now hiding out in Hungary?

Since the case is ongoing, let's recap.

Updates can be found here.

courtlistener.com/docket/7244147…

The most recent news is that Elon will be deposed in the case.

courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…

Topics:

Concerning the topics requested by Tripp's attorneys:

1. "Any statements made by Elon Musk regarding Martin Tripp." - Granted

2. "Any written or e-mail communications disclosed by Tesla to or from Elon Musk." - Granted

3. "Elon Musk’s knowledge of Tesla’s investigation of Martin Tripp." - Granted

4. "Elon Musk’s knowledge of the matters alleged in Tesla’s Complaint and Mr. Tripp’s Counterclaim. Case..

3:18-cv-00296-LRH-CLB Document 125-1 Filed 12/13/19 Page 45 of 60" - Only granted with respect to the counter-claim and items gleaned through the investigation provided to Musk which resulted in action by him

5. "Elon Musk’s knowledge of the alleged threat to “shoot up” the...

Gigafactory, including any statements made to third parties by Elon Musk and Tesla regarding the alleged threat." - Granted

6. "Any efforts by Elon Musk to publicly criticize, threaten legal action against, or undermine the public or professional standing of critics of Elon..

Musk or Tesla, including without limitation Vernon Unsworth and Lawrence Fossi (aka Montana Skeptic)." - Granted only with respect to Tripp.

7. "Any matter bearing on Elon Musk’s credibility or biases, which are always relevant." - Denied

The fact that Musk will be deposed offers the potential for a (brief) extension beyond January 31 for the end of discovery.

Some points of interest from the filings that shed colour on the events that transpired. I'll also attach various screenshots.

courtlistener.com/recap/gov.usco…

"But Tripp admitted that he had discussed with co-workers that the “going rate” for providing confidential information to a reporter was $50,000. (Ex. 3 at 113:10-114:10, 189:22-190:22; Ex. 1 at 164:15-165:10.) Tesla’s investigators further discovered that Tripp discussed the...

$50,000 payment with another former employee, James Uelmen, asked Uelmen to speak with Lopez, and sent a text “GUARANTEE[ING]” Uelmen “will get some money” if he was “helpful.” (Ex. 4; Ex. 5 at 17:2-18:17.)"

"Incredibly, even after this lawsuit was filed, Tripp publicly posted—as part of a series of vulgar, false attacks on Tesla—additional confidential information that he had stolen. This included, among other things, posting actual vehicle identification numbers (VINs) and...

telling Tesla customers that their cars contained defective battery cells—which the evidence has conclusively proven is false. And, although he complains about Tesla’s press statement that continued to accurately report that Bell had received a call about a threat—he fails to...

mention that he was falsely telling the media that there was no call, and that it was all a hoax."

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"After lying about his involvement for hours, Tripp finally admitted to stealing Tesla confidential information, providing it to Lopez, working with Lopez to publish the...

articles, and trying to hide his activities. (Ex. 3 at 144:1-147:14, 156:4-10; see also Ex. 2 at 67:9-68:12, 70:20- 71:7.) Tripp provided the investigators with the SQL query (computer code he wrote to access Tesla’s confidential information) and spreadsheet he used to collect...

and disclose Tesla confidential data. (Ex. 3 at 204:23-206:4; Ex. 2 at 73:13-74:5, 75:14-76:11.)

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But Tripp obtained discovery from those with firsthand knowledge of the underlying facts that, at the time of the statement, Tripp had surreptitiously run SQL scripts on...

Tesla’s systems to acquire confidential data, secretly taken screenshots from Tesla computers, stolen Tesla internal emails, taken steps to “cover his tracks,” and leaked all of this information to a reporter to publish demonstrably false allegations of wrongdoing."

"The same day that Tesla filed this lawsuit, it received a call from someone who identified himself as a “very close friend” of Tripp. (Ex. 6.) The caller sounded “genuine,” “scared,” and “concerned.” (Ex. 7 at 79:9-80:7, 92:3-16.) He said that he “feared for the safety of...

employees” at the Gigafactory because Tripp was “heavily armed,” “extremely volatile,” and “extremely upset” that his name had been “released to the media” through the lawsuit. (Ex. 7 at 78:2-15; Ex. 6.)

The call center employee who received the call, Shamara Bell, testified...

that it was “scary,” causing her to be “concerned that Mr. Tripp might show up to the Gigafactory and shoot the place up.” (Ex. 7 at 79:18-23, 82:7-18.) She further testified that Tesla’s press statement and what the caller said “are saying the same thing.” (Ex. 7 at...

58:14-59:5.) Indeed, while Bell was still on the call, another employee, Kristen Krerowicz, sent an instant message to warn others at Tesla that a caller said that Tripp “is heavily armed and headed to the Giga Factory”:

This urgent message was quickly sent up the chain to...

several additional people, and law enforcement was called. (Ex. 9 at 2.) The threat was entirely credible. Tripp had been a troubled employee even before he stole company information and provided it to a reporter. (Ex. 10 at 232:21-233:25.) When Tesla received the warning call,..

Tripp had been unmasked, terminated, and was facing a lawsuit. (Ex. 11 at 56:3- 22; Ex. 1 at 90:13-91:14.) Furthermore, Tesla’s security team had reason to believe he had access to firearms. (Ex. 1 at 69:4-70:12; 87:2-88:5.) Hours before Tesla received a call about the...

Gigafactory threat, Tripp sent an email to Musk stating “you have what’s coming to you.” (Ex. 11 at 59:8-18.) Later that afternoon, a reporter contacted Musk for comments about the lawsuit and the above email exchange with Tripp (which exchange Tripp had brought up with the...

reporter). (Ex. 12 at 3.) Musk forwarded Tripp’s email, Case 3:18-cv-00296-LRH-CLB Document 112 Filed 11/20/19 Page 12 of 15 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 TESLA, INC.’S OPPOSITION TO TRIPP’S MOTION TO COMPEL DEPOSITION OF ELON MUSK...

-12- told the reporter that he “was just told that we received a call at the Gigafactory that [Tripp] was going to come back and shoot people,” and directed the reporter to Tesla’s communications team for more information. (Id. at 1.)"

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Lastly, it's important to remember...

Tripp's (originally claimed) backstory: that he doesn't know how to program, has no interest in guns, etc. It's also worth recalling that he initially had an SEC case, until his attorney - Stuart Meissner - dropped him shortly after he launched into an unhinged Tweetstorm.