Elon Musk’s Dad Accused of Sexually Abusing Multiple Children and Stepchildren

In a disturbing investigation from the New York Times, Errol Musk is accused of sexually abusing five children and stepchildren, including the stepdaughter he went on to have two children with.

By Audra Heinrichs  |  September 24, 2025 | 4:25pm
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Elon Musk’s Dad Accused of Sexually Abusing Multiple Children and Stepchildren

On Tuesday, the New York Times published an upsetting investigation in which Errol Musk (as in the 79-year-old father of the billionaire tech oligarch and super-spreader) is accused of sexually abusing five of his children and stepchildren in South Africa and California. Among the alleged victims is his stepdaughter, Jana Bezuidenhout, with whom he had two children in 2017 and 2019.

According to the NYT, the earliest record of abuse occurred in 1993, when Musk’s then-4-year-old stepdaughter (Bezuidenhot) told relatives he had touched her inappropriately at the family’s home. A decade later, Bezuidenhout told family members she caught Musk smelling her dirty underwear when she went to her bedroom to get a sweatshirt. After that incident, the family members called the police. Elon was also informed of the incident. To NYT, Musk vehemently denied the claim and said he had only been cleaning up his stepdaughter’s room because it was “in a terrible state.”

Further in the story, relatives also accused Musk of abusing two of his daughters and a stepson. Subsequently, three separate police investigations were opened. While it’s unclear what happened in one investigation, the other two ended without action. Meanwhile, Musk maintains his innocence, claiming that all of the allegations were “false and nonsense in the extreme.” Further, he asserted that they were lies concocted by the relatives with the purpose of getting payments from Elon.

The victim of the fifth and final claim of abuse is allegedly the son he shares with Bezuidenhout. In 2022, the former couple’s then-5-year-old son accused Musk of grabbing his butt, per text messages from Heide-Mari Bezuidenhout, Errol’s third ex-wife and Jana’s mother.

“He said, ‘Dad gropes his behind,’” she wrote to a relative in 2023. “He screamed, ‘No, dad.’” While relatives contacted the police about the boy’s claim, prosecutors dropped the case because there was no tangible proof.

“There was no evidence because this is nonsense,” Errol told the NYT. Meanwhile, the piece is rife with police and court records, personal letters, emails and text messages, and interviews with family members. According to Ellie Smit, whose sister is Musk’s third wife, Musk “left a massive wound in our family.”

Elon didn’t comment on the story, nor has he acknowledged it since it was published. However, in an authorized biography written in 2023, he said he did not communicate with his father.

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