Errol Musk, the father of billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, is facing fresh controversy after being accused of sexually abusing five of his children and stepchildren, according to a report by The New York Times published on Tuesday.

The report, based on letters, emails, legal documents, and interviews with family members, states that the allegations against the 79-year-old date back to 1993. One of the earliest claims came from his four-year-old stepdaughter, who told relatives that he touched her inappropriately at their home. Years later, the same stepdaughter said she caught him sniffing her dirty underwear.

The report also includes accusations involving two daughters and a stepson. It further revealed that three police investigations were opened into the claims. Two of them were closed without action, while the status of the third remains unclear.

However, Errol Musk has denied the allegations, calling them “nonsense” and “false.” He told The New York Times that there is “no evidence” to support the claims and accused relatives of influencing the children to try to get money from Elon Musk.

The report noted that Elon Musk, who briefly advised the Trump administration during its second term, has rarely spoken publicly about his father. On some occasions, however, he reportedly intervened when family members reached out to him for help. Family members interviewed for the story said that Errol Musk, who has at least nine children and stepchildren from three marriages, “continues to have a strong influence over much of the family.”

Elon Musk and his father relationship

Elon Musk has described his relationship with his father as very strained. In a 2017 Rolling Stone profile, he said Errol had done “almost every evil thing you could think of.” Reflecting on his childhood, Musk said that at the age of 10, he went to live with his father, while his siblings, Kimbal and Tosca, stayed with their mother

“I felt sorry for my father because my mother had all three kids. He seemed very sad and lonely, so I thought, ‘I can keep him company,’” Musk told the magazine. “I didn’t really understand at the time what kind of person he was … It was not a good idea.” Musk also said his father “plans bad things very carefully,” though he did not give any details.