Elon Musk says an article alleging he engaged in sexual misconduct with a SpaceX flight attendant is a “politically motivated hit piece.”
What You Need To Know
- Elon Musk says an article alleging he engaged in sexual misconduct with a SpaceX flight attendant is a “politically motivated hit piece.”
- On Thursday, Insider reported that Musk, the billionaire founder of SpaceX and Tesla who last month agreed to buy Twitter for $44 billion, settled the misconduct complaint in March 2018 for $250,000
- According to the website, the woman, who worked on a contract basis on SpaceX’s corporate jet fleet, accused Musk of exposing himself to her, rubbing her leg without consent and offering to buy her a horse in exchange for an erotic massage
- A day after declaring on Twitter he plans to vote Republican, the billionaire wrote, “The attacks against me should be viewed through a political lens.”
On Thursday, Insider reported that Musk, the billionaire founder of SpaceX and Tesla who last month agreed to buy Twitter for $44 billion, settled the misconduct complaint in March 2018 for $250,000.
According to the website, which cited interviews and documents it obtained, the woman, who worked on a contract basis on SpaceX’s corporate jet fleet, accused Musk of exposing himself to her, rubbing her leg without consent and offering to buy her a horse in exchange for an erotic massage.
Insider interviewed a friend of the flight attendant’s whom she confided in shortly after the alleged incident and who, at the request of the woman’s attorney, signed a declaration corroborating the claims. The friend spoke on the condition of anonymity, citing fears for her personal safety.
The flight attendant, whom the website did not name because she claimed to be a victim of sexual misconduct, declined to comment for the story. Her settlement included an agreement not to sue as well as non-disclosure and non-disparagement clauses that prevent her from discussing the payment or disclosing any information about Musk and his businesses. Those clauses do not apply to the woman’s friend.
The flight attendant claimed her superiors encouraged her to obtain her masseuse license, implying it would help her receive more work, the friend said.
The woman told her friend that during a 2016 flight to London aboard Musk’s Gulfstream G650ER, the billionaire asked her to come to his room to give him a “fully body massage,” Insider reported. That is when the alleged incident occurred.
“He basically tried to bribe her to perform some sort of sexual favor,” the friend said.
The flight attendant declined and continued with the massage without engaging in any sex acts, Insider reported. The woman claims SpaceX cut back her shifts after the alleged incident, which she believed was retaliation for rejecting Musk’s advances, according to her friend.
The attendant then hired a lawyer who sent a complaint to SpaceX’s human resources department. The complaint was quickly resolved and never reached a court or arbitration proceeding, Insider reported.
The website said that when it first contacted Musk for a response, he asked for more time, saying there is “a lot more to this story.”
“If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light,” he said in an email to Insider, calling the article a “politically motivated hit piece.”
Insider said Musk did not respond to a subsequent request for comment.
Musk reiterated his view late Thursday night that politics fueled the article, writing on Twitter: “The attacks against me should be viewed through a political lens – this is their standard (despicable) playbook – but nothing will deter me from fighting for a good future and your right to free speech.”
Musk says his primary motivation to buy Twitter is to protect free speech on the social media platform.
A Wednesday, a day before the article was published, Musk tweeted that the Democratic Party has become “the party of division & hate so I can no longer support them and will vote Republican.” In the same post, he wrote, “Now, watch their dirty tricks campaign against me unfold.”
The Insider reporter, Rich McHugh, wrote on Twitter he had been working on the article “for quite some time.”
Responding to a comment on Twitter early Friday morning, Musk claimed the article’s goal was to interfere with his Twitter acquisition.
The friend told Insider she chose to speak out without consulting the flight attendant because, as a survivor of sexual assault, she felt an obligation to share what she was told about Musk.”
“I absolutely felt a responsibility to come forward with it, especially now,” she said. “He is the richest man in the world. Someone with that level of power causing that kind of harm and then throwing some money at the situation, that’s not accountability.”
