Tesla CEO Elon Musk lied about “refusing” Epstein island invite, newly released DOJ emails show
Fred Lambert | Jan 30 2026 - 2:37 pm PT
9 Comments
Elon Musk claimed he “refused” invitations to visit Jeffrey Epstein’s private island after the financier was already convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor, but newly released Department of Justice documents prove that was a lie.
The emails show Musk actively trying to plan a visit and asking Epstein about “the wildest party” on his island.
What Musk claimed
When the first batch of Epstein files dropped in September 2025, Musk’s name appeared in the documents. The Tesla CEO quickly took to X (formerly Twitter) to distance himself, writing:
“Epstein tried to get me to go to his island and I REFUSED.”
That statement is now provably false.
What the emails actually show
The DOJ released approximately 3 million new Epstein documents today, including email exchanges between Musk and Epstein from 2012 to 2015, based on what I’ve verified so far. I’m less than halfway through the “Elon Musk” mentions in the files. He is mentioned more than 1,000 times.
Far from “refusing,” the emails show Musk initiating contact to arrange a visit on several occasions.
The first time was for the holiday season in 2012. In November, Musk was discussing going to Epstein’s island and specifically asked the convicted felon:
“What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”
Here’s the email:
A month later, on Christmas Day, Musk, a father of many children, was asking Epstein again if he had “any parties planned”:
“Do you have any parties planned? I’ve been working to the edge of sanity this year and so, once my kids head home after Christmas, I really want to hit the party scene in St Baits or elsewhere and let loose. The invitation is much appreciated, but a peaceful island experience is the opposite of what I’m looking for.”
Here’s the email:
It’s unclear if he actually attended Epstein’s island during the 2012 holiday season, but he certainly wanted to based on these emails.
Then, in December 2013, he exchanged several emails with Epstein and his assistants about visiting the island.
He was already in neighboring St-Barth, and Epstein had arranged to send a helicopter to pick up Musk and guests.
Musk was all ready to go and unlike his claim that he “refused” Epstein’s invitation, Epstein was actually the one to cancel this visit at the last minute:
For New Year’s Eve the next year, Musk is again on the calendar to visit the island. It’s not clear if he attended.
The emails also confirmed Musk and Esptien had several phone calls and met in California and New York.
Epstein was already a convicted sex offender
This matters: By 2012, when Musk first started to have contact with Jeffrey Epstein, the New York financier had already been convicted of soliciting prostitution from a minor (2008). While the full scope of his crimes wasn’t yet public, Epstein’s reputation for hosting parties with young women was well-known in his social circle.
At the very least, Musk was aware he was corresponding with a convicted sex offender about attending wild parties on a private island.
Electrek’s Take
We typically focus on Tesla, EVs, and clean energy, not Jeffrey Epstein. But when Tesla’s CEO makes a public statement that is directly contradicted by documentary evidence, that’s relevant to our coverage.
Musk told the public he “refused” to visit Epstein’s island. His own emails show him asking, “What day/night will be the wildest party on your island?”
Those two things cannot both be true.
The evidence is clear. Musk sought to go to the island on at least 2 different occasions, and Epstein canceled one of them. He knew about “wild parties” there, and all of this happened after Epstein was already convicted of soliciting prostitution from minors. And he lied about refusing to go.
Do what you want with this information.
electrek.co |
