Elon Musk post targets US judge, not South Korean Constitutional Court justice

"The United States seems to have stepped up its support, their wording is becoming stronger," read part of the Korean-language caption of a screenshot shared on Facebook on February 9, 2025.

The screenshot shows an Elon Musk post on X, which reads: "A corrupt judge protecting corruption. He needs to be impeached NOW!"

The caption goes on to claim Musk's post was "a warning to Moon Hyung-bae", one of eight judges on South Korea's Constitutional Court responsible for adjudicating President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment (archived link).

The court will decide whether to strip Yoon of his presidential duties over a botched martial law attempt in December 2024 that plunged South Korea into its worst political crisis in decades.

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Screenshot of the false Facebook post, captured February 10, 2025

The ruling People Power Party and its supporters have questioned Moon's impartiality, citing his alleged relationship with opposition figures such as Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung (archived link).

The court has responded by saying Moon's personal relationships would not affect the court's handling of Yoon's impeachment trial (archived link).

The screenshot of Musk's X post was shared alongside similar claims elsewhere on Facebook in posts from pro-Yoon users.

"The US is finally coming to President Yoon's aid, it is now only a matter of time before he is freed," read a comment on one of the posts.

Another said: "It would have been nicer if Musk pointed out (Moon) Hyung-bae by name."

Musk, however, was not criticising the South Korean judge in his X post.

US federal judge

A keyword search led to Musk's original X post from February 9, which was in reply to an earlier post from US conservative commentator Glenn Beck (archived here and here).

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Screenshot of Musk's original X post from February 9, posted as a reply to Glenn Beck

Beck's post was a criticism of an emergency order issued by US District Judge Paul Engelmayer on February 8 that restricts giving access to the Treasury Department's payment systems and other data to "all political appointees, special government employees, and government employees detailed from an agency outside the Treasury Department" (archived link).

The order came after reports that the so-called Department of Government Efficiency -- which is leading US President Trump's federal cost-cutting efforts -- was accessing sensitive data at the Treasury Department.

Musk's X post calling for Engelmayer's impeachment was widely reported by US media, including on CNBC and PBS (archived here and here). 

A flurry of posts from Musk followed his attack on Engelmayer on February 9, including one in which he proposed "that the worst 1% of appointed judges, as determined by elected bodies, be fired every year" and another in which he expressed agreement with a cartoon satirising Engelmayer's order (archived here and here).

Separate searches found no posts from Musk about South Korean judges.

AFP previously debunked another false claim targeting Moon here, as well as separate false claims suggesting Musk had expressed support for Yoon's suspension of civilian rule here and here.