Elol Musk's Father Claims Jeffrey Epstein Is Alive During Russian State TV Appearance

Errol Musk, the father of Elon Musk, said in an interview with Russian state news agency RIA Novosti that he believes Jeffrey Epstein is still alive, repeating a claim that contradicts the official U.S. finding that Epstein died by suicide in federal custody in 2019.

According to pickup reports of the April 6 interview, Errol Musk said Epstein is "definitely alive" and that "there is no doubt about it." He did not provide evidence for the claim.

The official report says that Epstein died in August 2019 at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. The New York City medical examiner ruled his death a suicide by hanging, and U.S. authorities have continued to stand by that conclusion.

Doubts about Epstein's death have persisted because of documented failures at the Manhattan federal jail where he was being held. Official investigations also found serious lapses, including broken or malfunctioning cameras, missed checks by guards, staffing failures and earlier problems with preserving footage, all of which fed years of public suspicion even though authorities did not change the official conclusion.

A separate conspiracy theory claims Epstein did not die and is instead living in Israel, but there is no verified evidence to support that allegation. That rumor has circulated for years in fringe spaces and resurfaced again in 2026 through fake or misleading online content, including an AI-generated image falsely presented as proof that Epstein had been spotted in Tel Aviv. Reuters fact-checkers found that image was fabricated, and U.S. authorities have not produced any evidence that Epstein escaped custody or survived.

Errol Musk's comments were published by RIA Novosti, one of Russia's main state-controlled news agencies, and then spread through other outlets and social media accounts. At this point, no U.S. law enforcement agency or independently verified investigative body has produced evidence that Epstein survived or escaped custody.

The remarks are the latest in a series of public comments by Errol Musk that have drawn attention beyond South Africa and the United States. Earlier reporting cited by The Moscow Times said he described his family as being "a little bit in awe" of Russian President Vladimir Putin.