Billionaire Elon Musk sparked controversy by releasing over 35 posts on his platform "X", directly criticizing US President Donald Trump, accusing his administration of covering up the files of convicted businessman Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in his cell in 2019 before his trial.
In his posts, Musk referred to documents he described as important related to the case, hinting at the personal involvement of influential figures in covering up names associated with Epstein. He bluntly stated that the Trump administration practiced "clear cover-up", and that there are parties trying to prevent the publication of what is known as the "Epstein List".
He added sarcastically: "It's amazing that Epstein committed suicide and Ghislaine is in prison because of a trick", referring to his former partner Ghislaine Maxwell, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence after being convicted of assisting Epstein in luring underage girls.
Musk did not spare Trump's crisis management style from criticism, saying: "1. Deny everything. 2. Deny everything. 3. Present counterclaims. But this will not work this time".
He also shared a picture of documents distributed in the "Make America Great Again" campaign at the White House in February, titled "Epstein Files: Phase One", and commented saying: "Where is Phase Two?".
In one of his posts, Musk used his platform's artificial intelligence robot, Grok, and asked if the government keeps records of Epstein's flights, to which Grok replied: "Yes, the Department of Justice and the Federal Aviation Administration keep passenger lists and accurate records".
It is noteworthy that Grok itself was the subject of a major deal between Musk's company and the Trump administration, valued at $200 million, raising questions about the timing of these statements and the nature of the relationship between the two parties.
On the other hand, the American channel "ABC" considered some of Musk's claims to be based on "false assumptions" and unsupported conspiracy theories, especially regarding the existence of a secret "Epstein List".
In his first response to this escalation, Trump wrote on his platform "Truth Social": "I am sorry to see Elon Musk completely out of control, becoming effectively a train wreck over the past five weeks".
It is worth mentioning that Musk was one of the prominent supporters of Trump in the 2024 elections, contributing significantly to his campaign funding, before the relationship between them soured after Musk resigned from his position in the Ministry of Government Efficiency in May last year.
As for Jeffrey Epstein, he faced charges of sex trafficking and exploiting dozens of underage girls, some as young as 14, before announcing his suicide in prison, under circumstances that still raise doubts to this day.