Technology tycoon Elon Musk faces a trial after calling a British diver who helped rescue 12 boys from a cave in Thailand a “pedo” on Twitter.
The PayPal co-founder, 47, will defend himself after the verbal slagging match during last year’s operation in which he branded Vernon Unsworth a “pedo guy”.
The hero diver, who lives in Thailand with his 41-year-old girlfriend, has filed a defamation lawsuit.
Mr Musk’s attempt to dismiss the case was yesterday rejected by a Los Angeles federal court judge, and a trial will take place on October 22, according to court files.
The pair got into a row on the social media site during the rescue mission when Mr Unsworth, 64, slammed the mogul’s offer to send a mini submarine to help as a PR stunt.
He told CNN that Mr Musk – who is worth nearly $20 billion (£15 billion) – could “stick his submarine where it hurts.”
The arguing intensified with the Tesla billionaire claiming the diver’s rescue role was exaggerated, before branding him a paedophile on July 15 last year.
At the time, the South African-born tycoon’s account had 22.5 million followers.
Vernon Unsworth is seeking $75,000 in damages from the Space X owner
He says his insulting comment was merely freedom of speech, but the judge overseeing the case disagreed.
Mr Unsworth, who strongly refutes the allegations, is seeking more than $75,000 in damages along with a court order prohibiting the Space X owner from making further comments about him.
Only last year Mr Musk found himself in hot water after his comments on Twitter landed him with a legal headache.
He and Tesla reached a $40 million settlement over allegations he misled investors by tweeting he had secured cash for a buyout of the car maker.
He defended himself in court earlier this year against assertions that he violated an agreement with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
