Lordstown Motors were briefly halted after cratering on news that the Department of Justice is probing the company, according to Dow Jones. Shares tanked around 1130 EST on the news and were halted.

The probe shouldn't come as a surprise to those who have been following the Lordstown saga. Recall, the company was caught lying about its "binding" orders (again) just hours after its CEO Steve Burns resigned after allegations of same in mid-June.

In mid-June Lordstown was forced to correct itself in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission about statements its President made the day prior. Tucked into a Form 8-K that looked as though it was just to accompany the announcement of the hiring of a new VP of Global Commercial Operations, the company admitted statements its President made earlier in the week (and that boosted the stock) were inaccurate:

To clarify recent remarks by company executives at the Automotive Press Association online media event on June 15, although these vehicle purchase agreements provide us with a significant indicator of demand for the Endurance, these agreements do not represent binding purchase orders or other firm purchase commitments. As previously disclosed in our Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2020, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 8, 2021, to date, we have engaged in limited marketing activities and we have no binding purchase orders or commitments from customers.