The company buying Trump's Truth Social warned the deal could collapse because it's been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury

• The SPAC trying to buy the firm behind Truth Social has received subpoenas from a grand jury, an SEC filing shows.
• The subpoenas indicate federal prosecutors may be considering a criminal investigation.

The SPAC that is attempting to acquire the company behind Donald Trump's social media app Truth Social said in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Monday the acquisition is the subject of a new investigation by a grand jury.

Digital World Acquisition Corp warned in its filing that it has been sent a number subpoenas, which have the potential to delay or even kill the merger it is pursuing with Trump Media and Technology Group, especially since the deal is already under investigation by the SEC.

The filing said a member of Digital World's board of directors received subpoenas from a grand jury based in the Southern District of New York on June 16.

The grand jury also sent subpoenas to the company on June 24, according to the SEC filing.

Digital World's Monday filing said the subpoenas issued by the grand jury contained "substantially similar requests" to ones previously made by the SEC.

The subpoenas signal federal prosecutors could be exploring the possibility of a criminal investigation into the acquisition.

United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damian Williams declined to comment when contacted by The New York Times about the filing.

Williams' office did not immediately respond when contacted by Insider outside of usual US working hours.

Digital World Acquisition Corp and TMTG did not immediately respond when contacted by Insider outside of usual US working hours.

Scrutiny by investigators isn't the only threat facing Digital World. The company warned in a May filing that Trump's previous failed business ventures — including the Trump Taj Mahal casino, Trump University, and Trump Vodka — mean TMTG could be vulnerable to bankruptcy.

Truth Social closely resembles Twitter, and was launched on Apple's App Store in February. While Trump was initially fairly quiet on the app, he has started to use it more frequently in recent months.

Trump's Twitter account was permanently suspended in January 2021 after he posted a video addressing the rioters at the January 6 storming of the Capitol building.

In the video, Trump told rioters: "Go home. We love you. You're very special," and reiterated baseless claims the election had been fraudulent.

Twitter said it had banned him "due to the risk of further incitement of violence."