Did Elon Musk know sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein?
What's the story
Elon Musk's name has been linked to the Jeffrey Epstein scandal by Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein's former girlfriend and associate. She has contradicted the world's richest man's claims that he didn't know her or Epstein. According to transcripts of interviews released by the US Department of Justice, Maxwell said that she met Musk at a multi-day birthday celebration for Google co-founder Sergey Brin around 2010-2011. She said that Musk was one of the guests on a Caribbean island for this event.
Friendship claims
Maxwell claimed to see Musk at an Oscars event
Maxwell also said she saw Musk at an Oscars event, likely referring to the March 2014 Vanity Fair Oscar Party where they were photographed together. In response to a Twitter user in 2024, Musk had denied knowing Maxwell, saying she "photobombed" him at the party. Maxwell denied knowledge of any close friendship between Musk and Epstein but claimed that the latter was connected to Musk's brother.
Deleted post
Musk claimed Trump's name was mentioned in Epstein's files
The revelation comes amid a continued controversy over the Donald Trump administration's refusal to release the Epstein files. Recently, after a public falling out with Trump, Musk had claimed in a now-deleted post on X that Trump's name was mentioned in these files.