Elon Musk is under a federal investigation related to his $44 billion takeover deal for Twitter, the social media company said in a court filing made public on Thursday.

Twitter said it requested that Musk's attorneys produce their communications with federal authorities months ago but they had not done so, and asked a Delaware judge to order the attorneys to provide the documents.

In late September, Musk's attorneys provided a "privilege log" identifying documents to be withheld from discovery. The log referenced drafts of a May 13 email to the US Securities and Exchange Commission and a slide presentation to the Federal Trade Commission, Twitter said.

An attorney for Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The court request was filed on Oct. 6, the same day the court granted a stay of litigation to allow Twitter and Musk to close the takeover deal.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk leaves Manhattan federal court after a hearing on his fraud settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in New York City, US, April 4, 2019.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk leaves Manhattan federal court after a hearing on his fraud settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in New York City, US, April 4, 2019. (credit: REUTERS/SHANNON STAPLETON/FILE PHOTO)

SEC questioned Musk regarding Twitter deal

The SEC has questioned Musk's comments about the Twitter acquisition. In April, the SEC asked Musk whether the disclosure of his 9% Twitter stake was late and why it indicated that he intended to be a passive shareholder. Musk later refiled the disclosure to indicate he was an active investor.

In June, the SEC asked Musk in a letter whether he should have amended his public filing to reflect his intention to suspend or abandon the deal.