Tesla facing probe over ‘Glass Onion’ Musk mansion in Texas – report

Tesla is reportedly facing an investigation into its spending on a mansion for chief executive Elon Musk near the site of a new gigafactory in Austin, Texas.

Federal agents are looking into whether company funds were improperly used to build a glass house for the billionaire, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Very expensive specialised glass was ordered for the house, said the report, with the costs queried by Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) board members worried about the misappropriation of company funds.

US financial regulator, the Securities and Exchange Commission, is also said to be looking into the cost of the glass as any use of company money above US$120,000 by directors has to be publicly disclosed to investors under listing rules.

Personal benefits worth more than $10,000 must also be disclosed to investors.

Online wags have likened the house in Texas to the one in Glass Onion, a hugely popular comedy detective film where Edward Norton plays a tech company billionaire living in a glass mansion in Greece.