Ex-EBay CEO’s Texts Triggered Scare Campaign With Cockroaches

Last year, EBay Inc.’s then-Chief Executive Officer Devin Wenig fired off texts to a colleague expressing his ire over unflattering coverage by a blogger of his oversight of the e-commerce site. What followed, prosecutors said, was a criminal scheme by his underlings to cyber-stalk the couple behind the online newsletter.

Wenig isn’t charged in the case, but two former top EBay security executives and four other ex-employees were. While there’s no suggestion in court papers that Wenig knew of the plot, prosecutors say his angry emails triggered the scheme, and they play a central role in the narrative spelled ...