The deadline to close the $44 billion deal ends Thursday evening
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has fired several top Twitter executives after officially taking control of the company Thursday evening, according to multiple reports.
CNBC’s David Faber reported Thursday evening that Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal and CFO Ned Segal have “left” Twitter’s headquarters and “will not be returning as the Musk era begins.”
People familiar with the matter told The Washington Post that the move came after Musk’s $44 billion deal to takeover over the company closed.
They told the outlet that Agrawal and Segal, as well as Vijaya Gadde, head of legal policy, trust, and safety, were shuttled from the building after being fired.
FOX Business has reached out to Twitter for comment.
Musk’s takeover and the subsequent firing of its top executives caps off a months-long saga that began in April when Musk signed a deal to acquire Twitter. Musk backed out of the deal in July after accusing the company of failing to provide enough information about bot accounts.
A legal battle ensued culminating in a Delaware judge ordering an Oct. 28 deadline for both sides to close the deal. Musk offered to go through with his original proposal to buy Twitter for $44 billion. Twitter said it intended to close the transaction after receiving Musk’s offer.
Musk strolled into the company’s San Francisco headquarters on Wednesday carrying a porcelain sink, changed his Twitter profile to “Chief Twit,” and tweeted “Entering Twitter HQ – let that sink in!”
Earlier Thursday, Musk said he was buying the platform to help humanity and that he didn’t want it to become a “free-for-all hellscape.”
“The reason I acquired Twitter is because it is important to the future of civilization to have a common digital town square, where a wide range of beliefs can be debated in a healthy manner, without resorting to violence,” Musk wrote.
He continued: “There is currently great danger that social media will splinter into far right and far left-wing echo chambers that generate more hate and divide our society.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.