Elon Musk and Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling are among those named in a criminal complaint that Algerian boxer Imane Khelif filed with French authorities last week. The complaint accuses them of "acts of aggravated cyber harassment" after the Olympic gold medalist's gender identity was questioned at the Paris Summer Games.
Khelif's Paris-based attorney, Nabil Boudi, confirmed to Variety Tuesday that Musk and Rowling had been named in the complaint, initially filed on Friday to a unit of the Paris Prosecutor's Office known as the "National Center for the Fight Against Online Hatred."
Musk and Rowling could face five years in prison or nearly $275,000 in fines if Khelif were to win a case against them.
25-year-old Khelif was disqualified from the 2023 world championships after failing unspecified gender eligibility tests. Khelif does not claim to be a transgender woman, but allegedly has male XY chromosomes. The International Olympic Committee has challenged the validity of those gender tests and voted last year to expel the International Boxing Association that administered them.
The main controversy erupted after Khelif's Aug. 1 bout against Italian boxer Angela Carini, which Carini quit after just 46 seconds. Carini later said she had quit to “safeguard [her] life." After the match, Rowling posted a photo on X, writing that Khelif was "enjoying the distress of a woman he's just punched in the head."
Musk shared a post from former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines that said, "This is glorified male violence against women." Gaines has been an outspoken critic of biological males competing in women's sports.
Boudi said that prosecutors will also investigate Former President Donald Trump, who posted a video of the fight on Truth Social, writing, "I will keep men out of women's sports." Boudi said, "Trump tweeted, so whether or not he is named in our lawsuit, he will inevitably be looked into as part of the prosecution."
He added, "What we're asking is that the prosecution investigates not only these people but whoever it feels necessary. If the case goes to court, they will stand trial."