Overstock shares plunge more than 30 percent after CEO says he assisted ‘Russia investigation’

Shares for the internet retailer Overstock have plunged more than 30 percent this week after its CEO issued a statement saying that he assisted efforts to investigate Russian interference in the 2016 election. 

The e-commerce company’s stock has fell by 36 percent since Monday, a figure that represents its biggest two-day hit in 11 years, Bloomberg News reported. 

{mosads}The significant slide began after CEO Patrick Byrne came out with a statement about what he referred to as the “deep state.”

“Starting in 2015 I (operating under the belief that I was helping legitimate law enforcement efforts) assisted in what are now known as the ‘Clinton Investigation’ and the ‘Russian Investigation,’” Byrne said on the company’s website. “It was the third time in my life I helped the Men in Black.” 

“I will speak no more on the subject,” he continued. “Instead, having lived in places lacking Rule of Law and having witnessed the consequences of its absence, I plan on sitting back and watching the United States Department of Justice re-establish Rule of Law in our country.”

Byrne did not address any specifics regarding the aid he offered the investigation. His statement appeared to have come in response to an independent journalist’s story about the Russia probe. 

Bloomberg News noted that Byrne has a history of making unusual statements. Among other things, the CEO has compared the e-commerce giant’s cryptocurrency goals to the polio vaccine, the news outlet noted.

Overstock becomes the latest company to see its stock tumble following controversy related to politics. Wayfair, an online furniture company, has experienced a 7 percent plunge in stocks since employees discovered it sold beds to a detention facility housing migrant children, The Washington Post noted.  

Employees found out in June that a nonprofit government contractor managing migrant camps placed a $200,000 order for bedroom furniture.