British caver sues Elon Musk for calling him ‘child rapist’

A British caver who helped in the dramatic rescue of 12 boys trapped in Thailand earlier this year sued Tesla founder Elon Musk on Monday for calling him a “paedo guy” and a “child rapist”.

The defamation suit filed by Vernon Unsworth, a Briton involved in several cave rescues, follows a highly public spat between the two after Musk travelled to Thailand and offered to assist in rescue efforts.

The dispute made headlines in July, when Unsworth called Musk’s effort to build a minisubmarine for the rescue a “PR stunt” and Musk responded on Twitter by calling Unsworth a “paedo guy”, or paedophile.

Musk apologised days later but not before his comments were widely condemned, raising concerns over his leadership abilities.

But he reignited the dispute last month with an email to BuzzFeed News accusing Unsworth of being a “child rapist”, marrying a 12-year-old and engaging in child sex trafficking, the suit alleges.

Instead of apologising for his comments, Musk responded with an expletive-laden statement saying, “I hope he... sues me,” according to the suit.

Unsworth, who lives part of the year in Thailand, took part in the 18-day effort to retrieve the boys and their coach, a mission that ended on July 10, when the last five members were extracted.