Strange new details have emerged about an incident last week involving billionaire Elon Musk, his security team and an alleged stalker whose actions were blamed for Musk’s temporary suspension of several journalists.
South Pasadena Police said they took a report Dec. 13 from a 29-year-old Connecticut man who filed a complaint alleging “assault with a deadly weapon involving a vehicle,” according to a report in The Verge.
The police report obtained by the news outlet said the Connecticut man was stopped in a parking lot in the 700 block of Mission Street, making a call, when another vehicle pulled in front of him, blocking his path.
“The driver of the vehicle exited and approached the victim, accusing him of following him on the freeway,” according to the Pasadena police. “It appears that each party captured video during the dispute.
“As the suspect was leaving the parking lot, he struck the victim with his vehicle. When the officer arrived on scene, the suspect had already left the area.
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“At no time during the incident did the victim identify the suspect or indicate the altercation was anything more than coincidental,” the report said.
Two days later, on Dec. 15, the police report said, “South Pasadena Police learned the suspect involved in this case is believed to be a member of Elon Musk’s security team. Detectives do not believe Mr. Musk was present during the confrontation.”
The police said they are attempting to contact Musk and his security team regarding the incident.
If this odd story involves the same event that angered Musk enough to cancel the journalists’ Twitter accounts, the story shared by police is a departure from the details that emerged last week from Musk.
Were Elon Musk and his family stalked?
Yes: 96% (27 Votes)
No: 4% (1 Votes)
The Twitter owner and Tesla mogul made headlines on Dec. 14 after cracking down on accounts that shared information on his whereabouts following the alleged stalking.
“Any account doxxing real-time location info of anyone will be suspended, as it is a physical safety violation,” Musk tweeted.
“This includes posting links to sites with real-time location info. Posting locations someone traveled to on a slightly delayed basis isn’t a safety problem, so is ok,” he added.
Musk went on to explain the inciting incident for this change in Twitter policy.
“Last night, car carrying lil X in LA was followed by crazy stalker (thinking it was me), who later blocked car from moving & climbed onto hood,” Musk said in the thread of his son X Æ A-Xii.
“Legal action is being taken against Sweeney & organizations who supported harm to my family,” he said referring to Jack Sweeney, the University of Central Florida student who runs an account that posts the location and movement of Musk’s private aircraft.
Last night, car carrying lil X in LA was followed by crazy stalker (thinking it was me), who later blocked car from moving & climbed onto hood.
Legal action is being taken against Sweeney & organizations who supported harm to my family.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 15, 2022
Musk had previously pledged not to ban Sweeney, but news of one of Musk’s children being followed became the catalyst for a policy overhaul.
The SpaceX founder also posted a brief video of the alleged stalker, asking for help tracking him down. The Washington Post later identified the man as Brandon Collado.
Anyone recognize this person or car? pic.twitter.com/2U0Eyx7iwl
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 15, 2022
However, what Collado told the Post seems to give more credence to the initial account than it does to the subsequent version from the police.
Collado “acknowledged he has an interest in Musk and the mother of two of Musk’s children [Claire Elise Boucher, who goes by the stage name Grimes].”
It’s also come to light that the gas station where Collado just happened to pull over in his rented car is near Boucher’s home, though he told the Post he was in the neighborhood to make a delivery for Uber Eats.
The man also made “several bizarre and unsupported claims” to the news outlet that seem like paranoid delusions, including the belief that Musk was blocking him from getting work on the Uber Eats app and that the billionaire was tracking his real-time location.
Collado also told the Post he believed that Boucher was “sending him coded messages through her Instagram posts.”
It’s still unknown exactly what happened — but what Musk did in the aftermath of this incident has become the bigger story.
Musk not only lashed out at Sweeney, but also banned at least six journalists from the platform, including Taylor Lorenz, who co-authored the Washington Post report that contradicts Musk’s initial version of events. (Her account appears to have been restored).
When Musk took over Twitter, he promised it would become a free-speech platform, which it arguably has in his short time at the helm.
While critics are up in arms over his reaction to the alleged stalking incident, that criticism falls flat considering the other revelations about the previous regime at Twitter — most notably, suspicions that Twitter was colluding with the government have been confirmed by reports that the FBI was essentially given carte blanche to remove “misinformation” through back channels.
There’s also the issue of the behind-the-scenes machinations that potentially changed the course of the 2020 election, which reportedly were not only allowed, but welcomed.
All of that will likely pale in comparison when it fully comes to light what Twitter did during the COVID-19 pandemic to dissenting doctors and experts who did not toe the government line.
Even if Musk overreacted and reneged slightly on his free speech promise in this one instance, his leadership is a vast improvement over the previous corrupt and conniving regime.
