--- title: "Elon Musk’s Legal Defense: “Pedo Guy” Doesn’t Mean “Pedophile”" description: "Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk was caught calling a Thai cave rescuera “pedo” on Twitter before promptly deleting the incriminating tweet last July. But too little too late: the man on the receiving end of the accusation, cave diver Vernon Unsworth, decided to sue Musk for defemation. Now, Musk has gathered his best legal team to […]" date: "2019-09-17" modified: "2019-09-17" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/elon-musks-legal-defense-pedo-guy-pedophile" categories: - "Elon Musk" - "Future Society" - "The Industrialists" tags: - "elon musk" - "pedophile" - "pedophilia" - "the digest" --- # Elon Musk’s Legal Defense: “Pedo Guy” Doesn’t Mean “Pedophile” ![Musk has gathered his best legal team to help him build a defense after calling a Thai rescuer a pedo last July: "pedo guy" isn't a "pedophile guy."]() *\Image: Daniel Oberhaus via Flickr\* ## Pedo Guy Remember last year, when eccentric entrepreneur Elon Musk got mad at a diver who was helping rescue children trapped in a cave — and called him a "pedo guy" [on Twitter]()? Now the diver, Vernon Unsworth, is suing Musk for defamation. And Musk's legal team has an eyebrow-raising defense: "pedo guy" didn't actually mean Unsworth was a pedophile. ## Slang Game Yeah, you read that right. In fact, Musk says "pedo guy" is just a childhood insult from South Africa, where he grew up. "By referring to Mr. Unsworth as ‘pedo guy,’ I did not intend to convey any facts or imply that Mr. Unsworth had engaged in acts of pedophilia," Musk said [according to a court filing]() on Monday. "Pedo guy was a common insult used in South Africa when I was growing up. It is synonymous with ‘creepy old man’ and is used to insult a person’s appearance and demeanor, not accuse a person of pedophilia." ## Smearing Names In a [statement to *BuzzFeed News*](), Unsworth's attorney argued that "the motion filed by Elon Musk today is a disgusting and transparent effort to continue falsely smearing Vernon Unsworth without any credible or verified supporting evidence." Musk's lawyers, meanwhile, are requesting that the judge dismisses the case before a December trial. Mr. Unsworth cannot establish a defamation case just because Mr. Musk insulted him on Twitter and sent a private email to a reporter,” Musk's legal team wrote in the filing. "The Constitution does not allow that." **READ MORE:**[ Elon Musk claims ‘pedo guy’ is actually a South African insult that doesn’t mean pedophile]() \[*Washington Post*\] **More on Musk:** *[Elon Musk: “Next Gen” Craft Could Be Twice the Size of Starship]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()