‘That’s not manly’: Chechen warlord claims Elon Musk disabled his Tesla

Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov accused tech billionaire Elon Musk of remotely switching off his Tesla Cybertruck, which he has repeatedly claimed was a gift from the Tesla CEO.

Last month, the warlord posted a video of himself driving the Cybertruck, which was fitted with a machine gun turret, around the grounds of his presidential palace. He said the vehicle was a “gift” from Musk — but the Tesla boss denied the claim. Kadyrov said the Cybertruck would be sent to the combat zone in Ukraine for use by Russian troops.

But on Thursday, Kadyrov wrote on social media that the vehicle, which he claimed had performed “admirably” on the battlefield, had been remotely disabled by Tesla and had to be towed off the front lines.

“Elon Musk behaved badly. He gives expensive gifts from the bottom of his heart and then remotely disconnects them,” Kadyrov wrote on Telegram.

“That’s not manly,” he added, asking plaintively: “How could you do that, Elon?”

A staunch ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Kadyrov rules with an iron fist in Chechnya, where his government is accused of a range of human rights abuses and international law violations.