Elon Musk subpoenaed over lawsuit into JPMorgan’s links to Jeffrey Epstein
Elon Musk has been served a subpoena by the US Virgin Islands amid a lawsuit into JPMorgan’s links to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The tech billionaire has been ordered to hand over any documents relating to Epstein, including any potential efforts to recruit him as a client for financial services firm JPMorgan Chase.
But the US Virgin Islands government told a federal judge it could not find Mr Musk to serve him with the subpoena since it was issued 28 April.
Lawyers asked Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan to serve the papers to his electric vehicle company, Tesla, instead.
They said they hired an investigative firm to scour public records databases in search of potential addresses for Mr Musk as well as reaching out to his legal team over email – but to no avail.
On Monday night, Mr Musk tweeted saying the situation was “idiotic”, insisting he never sought Epstein’s advice.
The lawsuit – brought by the US Virgin Islands – is seeking to hold JPMorgan liable for sex trafficking acts committed by Epstein.
Mr Musk has not been implicated in any wrongdoing, nor has he been requested for questioning under oath.
The legal team has asked for similar files from Google co-founder Larry Page, whom they believe Epstein also recruited as a JPMorgan client.
Prosecutors in the US Virgin Islands – where Epstein had a home, and where the fund for his victims’ compensation is run – are seeking undisclosed damages from JPMorgan.
The US’s largest bank has been accused of missing red flags about Epstein’s abuse of women and girls on his private island, Little St James. The bank has denied knowledge of Epstein’s crimes.
Mr Musk has been asked to share any documents about Epstein’s involvement in human trafficking, about any fees he paid to Epstein or JPMorgan, as well as any communications he had with the firm about Epstein.
On Monday night, Mr Musk tweeted branding the situation “idiotic on so many levels”.
“That cretin never advised me on anything whatsoever,” he wrote, referring to Epstein.
He continued: “The notion that I would need or listen to financial advice from a dumb crook is absurd.”
He said JPMorgan let Tesla down 10 years ago and he has “never forgiven them”.
In a Tesla shareholder lawsuit, Mr Musk testified in January that JPMorgan used to have all of Tesla’s commercial banking business, but the relationship soured after the bank did not support Tesla’s automotive leasing line.
