Law enforcement in South Pasadena, California, have cast doubt on Elon Musk’s claim that a “crazy stalker” followed a car with his son in it last week, before the person “blocked [the] car from moving & climbed onto hood.” Musk used the alleged incident as justification for banning a Twitter account that tracked his private jet, and further claimed he would take legal action against the 20-year-old college student who operated it.
In a press release on Tuesday, the South Pasadena Police Department outlined a different set of facts.
On Dec. 13, the press release said, an officer arrived at the scene on Mission Street following a reported “assault with a deadly weapon involving a vehicle.”
Upon arrival, the “victim”—a 29-year-old man from Connecticut—explained that he had exited the highway and “stopped to use his telephone in a parking lot” when “another vehicle pulled directly in front of him, blocking his path.”
At that point, the victim alleged, “the driver of the vehicle exited and approached the victim, accusing him of following him on the freeway… As the suspect was leaving the parking lot, he struck the victim with his vehicle. As a result of the contact, the victim sustained superficial injuries.”
The press release said that authorities later learned that the alleged “suspect involved in this case is believed to be a member of Elon Musk’s security team.”
Counter to Musk’s earlier claim, “detectives do not believe Mr. Musk or any member of his family were present during the confrontation.”
This story is breaking and will be updated.