Oct 05, V7N -Elon Musk's social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, has paid $5.2 million in fines to settle a legal dispute in Brazil, but mistakenly transferred the funds to the wrong account, according to Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes. X incurred these fines for failing to comply with court orders to remove right-wing accounts accused of spreading disinformation and for not appointing a legal representative in the country.

The clash escalated when Moraes blocked X in August 2023 after Musk refused to comply with these demands. Despite Musk’s initial defiance, including calling Moraes an "evil dictator" and "Voldemort," X has now complied with most of the court’s demands, including naming a legal representative in Brazil. However, Moraes ordered that the misdirected funds be immediately redirected.

The battle between Musk and Moraes attracted global attention as a high-stakes test of freedom of speech versus the fight against disinformation. The conflict dates back to Brazil’s 2022 presidential election, where Moraes had ordered X to deactivate accounts of far-right supporters of Jair Bolsonaro, leading to tensions that further escalated after the January 2023 attacks on federal buildings in Brasilia by Bolsonaro supporters.

END/WSP/RH/