# Judge clears FEMA CFO after Musk's false accusations

> A federal judge ruled that Elon Musk engaged in state-sanctioned intimidation of ex-FEMA CFO Mary Comans by posting false criminal allegations on X.
- Title: Judge clears FEMA CFO after Musk's false accusations · CNBC
- Summary: A federal judge ruled that Elon Musk engaged in state-sanctioned intimidation of ex-FEMA CFO Mary Comans by posting false criminal allegations on X. A…
- Keywords: elon musk, mary comans, fema, trump administration, doge, false accusations, intimidation, business, finance, Judge, clears, CFO
- Source: CNBC — https://cnbc.com/2026/10/13/judge-says-elon-musk-engaged-intimidation-of-ex-fema-cfo-mary-comans.html
- Author: Lora Kolodny
- Published: 2026-10-13T20:28:50+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: elon musk, mary comans, fema, trump administration, doge, false accusations, intimidation, business, finance
## Musk accused FEMA CFO of criminal conduct
Elon Musk, head of DOGE, posted on X on February eleventh, twenty twenty-five that ex-FEMA CFO Mary Comans funneled fifty-eight million dollars to illegal migrant hotels in Manhattan.

> funneling $58 million to illegal migrant hotels in Manhattan
## Comans was fired the next day
The Department of Homeland Security fired Comans and three colleagues on February twelfth, twenty twenty-five, labeling them deep state activists after Musk's posts.

> deep state activists
## Judge found coordinated intimidation campaign
U.S. Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick ruled that high-ranking government officials including Musk engaged in a coordinated public relations campaign to impugn Comans' personal and professional integrity.

> engaged in a coordinated public relations campaign to impugn the personal and professional integrity of Ms. Comans
## Judge cleared Comans' name entirely
Fitzpatrick found Musk posted Comans' picture to millions of followers while falsely characterizing her government service as criminal action, describing it as state sanctioned intimidation.

> state sanctioned intimidation
## Comans served twenty-one years in government
Democracy Defenders Fund, which supported Comans' case, said career public servants should not have their names destroyed for partisan political gain after her two decades of federal service.

> Career public servants are people, not pawns
## Key takeaway

A federal judge cleared ex-FEMA CFO Mary Comans and found Elon Musk engaged in state-sanctioned intimidation by falsely accusing her of diverting millions to migrant hotels.