Brazil Judge Opens Probe Into Elon Musk After Decision for X to Defy Court Order

Elon Musk addresses the European Jewish Association's conference, in Krakow, Poland, on Jan. 22, 2024. Czarek Sokolowski/AP Photo

A Brazilian Supreme Court justice has opened a probe into Elon Musk, owner of the social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, for obstruction of justice after he challenged a court order requiring the removal of certain X accounts.

In his decision on April 7, Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes said Mr. Musk will be probed for alleged obstruction of justice, criminal organization, and incitement, according to multiple reports.

“The flagrant conduct of obstruction of Brazilian justice, incitement of crime, the public threat of disobedience of court orders and future lack of cooperation from the platform are facts that disrespect the sovereignty of Brazil,” the judge said.

He said the social media platform “shall refrain from disobeying any court order already issued, including performing any profile reactivation that has been blocked by this Supreme Court.”

The justice warned that X will face a fine of 100,000 reais (about $19,740) per day if it fails to comply with the court order.

Judge Threatened to Arrest X Staff in Brazil

Justice de Moraes’s order came after Mr. Musk announced on X on April 6 that his company would lift all restrictions on Brazilian accounts that had been targeted by the Supreme Court’s order.

The tech mogul claimed that Justice de Moraes had “applied massive fines, threatened to arrest [X] employees and cut off access to X in Brazil.”

Mr. Musk also said his decision to cease compliance with the court order would cause X to lose all revenue in Brazil and have to shut down its office there.

“But principles matter more than profit,” he said.

In another update on X on April 7, Mr. Musk said that his company “will publish everything demanded” by Justice de Moraes and explain how those requests violate Brazil’s law.

Mr. Musk suggested that Justice De Moraes “should resign or be impeached” from his role, alleging that the judge had “brazenly and repeatedly betrayed the constitution and people of Brazil.”

The Court Order

Previously, X Corp. stated that it had been forced by court decisions to block “certain popular accounts in Brazil” and was prohibited from disclosing the targeted accounts.

The company stated that it was unaware of the reasons behind the blocking orders and which posts were alleged to violate the law. X claimed that it was barred from disclosing the details of the order and threatened with daily fines if it failed to comply.

“The people of Brazil, regardless of their political beliefs, are entitled to freedom of speech, due process, and transparency from their own authorities,” X’s Global Government Affairs department said in a statement.

The announcement came after a report by investigative journalist Michael Shellenberger and colleagues David Ágape and Eli Vieira, titled “Twitter Files Brazil.”

Sitting members of Brazil’s Congress and journalists were among those named by Brazil’s highest court for censoring back in 2022 during an election year, Mr. Shellenberger said of his findings, which he has shared on X.

According to the internal files that Mr. Shellenberger shared, Twitter in Brazil was threatened with a $30,000 fine. The company had one hour to remove the congressmembers’ posts or pay the court for noncompliance.

The article reports that the justice had even been jailing individuals without trial for their social media posts.

Brazil's Superior Electoral Court President Alexandre de Moraes holds documents during the fourth day of the trial of Brazilian former President Jair Bolsonaro, accused of abuse of power and misinformation, in Brasília, on June 30, 2023. Sergio Lima/AFP via Getty Images

Brazil’s political right has long characterized Justice de Moraes as overstepping his bounds to clamp down on free speech and engage in political persecution. In the digital militias investigation, lawmakers from former President Jair Bolsonaro’s circle have been imprisoned and his supporters’ homes raided. Mr. Bolsonaro himself became a target of the investigation in 2021.

The justice’s defenders have said that his decisions, although extraordinary, are legally sound and necessary to purge social media of fake news and to extinguish threats to Brazilian democracy, underscored by the Jan. 8, 2023, protest in Brazil’s capital that resembled the Jan. 6, 2021, U.S. Capitol breach.

Brazilian Attorney General Jorge Messias wrote on X on April 6 that there was an urgent need for Brazil to regulate social media networks.

“We cannot live in a society in which billionaires domiciled abroad have control of social networks and put themselves in a position to violate the rule of law, failing to comply with court orders and threatening our authorities,“ he said. ”Social peace is non-negotiable.”

Melanie Sun and The Associated Press contributed to this report.