Billionaire Elon Musk was to be heard Monday in free hearing by the Paris prosecutor's office as part of the investigation "into possible violations by the X platform of French legislation", in particular sexual deepfakes. The owner of X ultimately did not appear in court but investigations are continuing.

Published on: 04/20/2026 - 04:03 Modified on: 04/21/2026 - 01:08

Elon Musk ultimately did not appear on Monday April 20, when he was summoned to a free hearing in Paris as part of an investigation into the possible abuses of his social network X.

“The prosecution notes the absence of the first people summoned. Their presence or absence is not an obstacle to the continuation of the investigations,” wrote the public prosecutor to AFP without mentioning the name of Elon Musk, confirming information from Le Canard chainé.

The prosecutor "is a puppet of a left-wing NGO", said Elon Musk on X, in response to an Internet user mentioning her non-appearance before French justice.

Along with the former general director of X, Linda Yaccarino, they are targeted “in their capacity as de facto and legal manager of the

This is at the forefront in the fight against the impunity of the Web giants. He has already opened investigations into the activities of Telegram messaging, the live streaming platform Kick, the video application TikTok and the online sales site Shein.

Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, also gave his support to Elon Musk on Monday. “Macron’s France is losing legitimacy by using criminal investigations to repress freedom of expression and private life,” denounced Pavel Durov on X and Telegram.

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But the investigation into X is the most symbolic. It targets one of the largest social networks in the world, owned by Elon Musk, the richest man on the planet, once close to the President of the United States, Donald Trump.

The procedure did not leave the multi-billionaire indifferent. Especially since French magistrates ordered a search of X's Parisian premises in mid-February and summoned him.

“They are mentally retarded,” he said, in the language of Molière, on his X network in mid-March.

X criticizes an “abusive judicial act”

Opened in January 2025, the French investigation, which is being handled by the national cyber unit of the gendarmerie, "focuses on possible violations by platform

In particular, possible complicity in the distribution of child pornography images and the use of X's artificial intelligence model for the creation of "deepfakes", that is to say ultra-realistic montages of a sexual nature, without the consent of the victims, he said. In a publication, the social network denounced during the searches an "abusive judicial act" based "on political motivations" and refuted any offense. He assured that he would “not allow himself to be intimidated”.

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“The Paris prosecutor's office is clearly trying to exert pressure on the general management of X in the United States by targeting (its) French entity,” estimated the American company.

The Paris prosecutor's office reacted on Saturday, recalling that "in accordance with French criminal procedure, which guarantees each accused the possibility of expressing themselves on the facts of which they are suspected, the managers and staff of company

“The conduct of this investigation is at this stage part of a constructive approach”, previously indicated the Paris prosecutor, Laure Beccuau, “with the objective of ultimately guaranteeing the conformity of the X platform with French laws”.

“The judicial authorities of other countries have also opened investigations targeting

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A letter from the US Department of Justice

On Friday, the Wall Street Journal echoed a letter sent by the international affairs office of the American Department of Justice, but the Paris prosecutor's office told Agence France-Presse (AFP) that it had no "knowledge of this letter."

In this missive, the federal justice system takes a position for X, considering in particular that the Paris investigation goes against the first amendment of the American Constitution on freedom of expression, according to the daily.

Not enough to change the French investigation: "It is necessary to remember that the French Constitution guarantees the separation of powers and the independence of the judicial authority. Criminal investigations are carried out under the sole authority of magistrates", insists the Paris prosecutor's office.

With AFP

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