'Call the scandal Elongate.' Musk reacts to report claiming he sexually harassed flight crew, paid her $250K in settlement

Hours after a report was published online claiming that the Tesla boss, Elon Musk, paid a flight attendant $250,000 to settle a sexual misconduct accusation against him in 2018, the businessman broke his silence on the matter, stating on the record that the "wild accusations are utterly untrue."

A report published by Business Insider on Thursday claimed that Musk, the world's richest man paid off an anonymous private jet flight attendant who accused him of exposing himself to her.

According to the article, the attendant worked as a member of the cabin crew on a contract basis for SpaceX's corporate jet fleet. She also accused the billionaire of rubbing her leg without consent, offering to buy her a horse in exchange for an "erotic massage".


The report quoted an anonymous person who said she was a friend of the flight attendant. The friend had provided a statement as part of the private settlement process, according to the article which quoted materials from interviews and documents obtained by Insider.

"I have a challenge to this liar who claims their friend saw me 'exposed' – describe just one thing, anything at all (scars, tattoos, …) that isn’t known by the public. She won’t be able to do so, because it never happened," Musk tweeted.


The alleged incident happened in 2016, as per the signed declaration by the attendant's friend. According to the friend, to whom the attendant confided in, the woman was encouraged to get a license as a masseuse after taking the flight attendant job, so that she could give massages to Musk.

In his first reaction to allegations, Musk had urged people to see the matter through "political lens", clearing that nothing will deter him from fighting for a good future and the right to free speech.


He then joked about the claim in another tweet, asking people to name the scandal: 'Elongate'.