Elon Musk Faces Investigation in Brazil Over Fake News and Alleged Obstruction

Brazilian authorities are investigating Elon Musk for spreading fake news and allegedly obstructing justice, following orders from Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes.

The investigation, announced late Sunday, targets Musk’s public campaign against the Brazilian Supreme Court’s decisions and his social media company X’s refusal to comply with orders to block certain accounts.

Justice de Moraes’ decision highlighted Musk’s actions as a direct challenge to the “sovereignty of Brazil,” involving the obstruction of justice and incitement of crime through his platform X.

The investigation will look into Musk’s potential involvement in obstructing justice, participating in a criminal organisation, and incitement, stemming from his support of what are described as “digital militias” spreading fake news against the Supreme Court.

Musk has not publicly responded to the investigation since late Sunday despite the allegations. The case has ignited debate in Brazil, with political factions divided over de Moraes’ aggressive stance against misinformation and threats to democracy.

Musk, declaring himself a proponent of absolute free speech, announced on X that his platform would no longer adhere to Brazilian court orders restricting certain accounts. He acknowledged that this move could jeopardise the company’s operations in Brazil.

He also encouraged Brazilian users to use VPNs to bypass potential restrictions and promised to disclose de Moraes’ demands, which he claims violate Brazilian law.

However, as of late Sunday, Musk had not published any of de Moraes’ demands, and the accounts previously blocked remained so, suggesting X had not yet acted on Musk’s statements.

De Moraes’ ruling imposes a fine of 100,000 reais ($20,000) per day for each reactivated account and legal accountability for those who disobey the court order.

This development comes amid calls from Brazil’s attorney general, Jorge Messias, for urgent regulation of social media platforms to prevent foreign billionaires from undermining Brazilian law and democracy.

In an X post, the attorney general wrote, “We cannot live in a society in which billionaires domiciled abroad have control of social networks and put themselves in a position to violate the rule of law, failing to comply with court orders and threatening our authorities.

“Social peace is non-negotiable,” he declared.

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