Former Tesla Engineer Accessed Manager's Email, Posted Confidential Docs Online: Indictment

A former Tesla engineer is facing charges for allegedly accessing his former manager’s work email, then posting confidential information from the account online, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Nima Kalbasi, 28, a former mechanical engineer with the Palo Alto-based company, appeared in federal court in Northern California for the first time on Thursday. He was indicted on two counts of felony computer intrusion.

After gaining access to the manager’s account, Kalbasi, a Canadian citizen, shared confidential employee evaluation forms with employees and on a public site, authorities said. Kalbasi then "tried to harm Tesla’s reputation and credibility by making false and misleading comments," according to a news release.

If convicted, Kalbasi could face a maximum of five years in prison for the felony charges.

Kalbasi was arrested in Derby Line, Vermont, by Customs and Border Protection as he crossed the border into the United States on August 24. 

A lawyer for Kalbasi declined to comment to Reuters, NBC News reported. 

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