Elon Musk revives claim that Thai cave rescue hero is a 'pedo' after denying he cried in interview

The Tesla founder has previously apologised to Vern Unsworth, who actually helped save trapped boys

Elon Musk has revived his strange claim that one of the heroes of the Thai cave rescue is a "pedo".

Mr Musk made the unfounded accusation after Vern Unsworth, one of the divers involved in the rescue, mocked the Tesla founder's attempt to help out with the recovery effort. But he apologised soon after, in a public comment posted to his Twitter account.

Now he has re-stated that accusation, saying that Mr Unsworth would have sued him if it were not true. While he did not state the wording explicitly, he refused to deny that he still believed the accusations about the diver.

The conversation initially began when Mr Musk attempted to deny that he had actually cried in a New York Times interview. He posted that the conversation – in which he admitted he had not seen his children because of his overwork at Tesla – had not actually made him tearful.

One Twitter user suggested that Mr Musk's devotion to the facts would have been more helpful when he was making the accusations against Mr Unsworth and others involved in the rescue effort for the Thai boys.

But instead of backing down on his accusations, he went on to suggest that the story is true because Mr Unsworth has not sued him. The diver is thought to have avoided legal action in the hope that the furore over the tweets would die down.

"You don’t think it’s strange he hasn’t sued me?" Mr Musk wrote in the first of a series of tweets. "He was offered free legal services."

He went on to suggest that people who were asking for proof of the allegations against Mr Unsworth had just not investigated the truth enough.

The bizarre tweets are in direct conflict with the apology posts that Mr Musk made in the wake of the tweets.

"My words were spoken in anger after Mr Unsworth said several untruths & suggested I engage in a sexual act with the mini-sub, which had been built as an act of kindness & according to specifications from the dive team leader," he wrote then.

"Nonetheless, his actions against me do not justify my actions against him, and for that I apologise to Mr Unsworth and to the companies I represent as leader. The fault is mine and mine alone.

"I am truly sorry if I offended anyone."

The New York Times interview that began the new argument included a range of detail on how Mr Musk's recent work schedule had affected his wellbeing as well as the use of his Twitter account. It suggested that he had posted a range of updates in haste, only to be criticised for them by people including those working at his own companies.