Attorney General Pam Bondi charged three people over the vandalism of Tesla properties.
The three defendants were arrested at the scene while vandalizing Tesla vehicles, charging stations, or dealerships. The move comes two days after Bondi labeled those engaged in Tesla vandalism as domestic terrorists.
“The days of committing crimes without consequence have ended,” Bondi said. “Let this be a warning: If you join this wave of domestic terrorism against Tesla properties, the Department of Justice will put you behind bars.”
Each defendant faces charges carrying five to 20 years in prison.
One defendant was arrested for allegedly throwing eight Molotov cocktails at a Tesla dealership, a second was arrested in Colorado for allegedly trying to light Tesla vehicles on fire, and a third was arrested in South Carolina for allegedly lighting Tesla charging stations on fire.
Teslas have been targeted for weeks, with numerous instances of vandalism of vehicles and properties reported. This ranges from graffiti to firebombing Tesla vehicles. Republican figures have decried the violence as domestic terrorism and sought to see it prosecuted as such.
Bondi warned in a Tuesday statement that she would begin charging vandals of Tesla property with domestic terrorism.
“The swarm of violent attacks on Tesla property is nothing short of domestic terrorism. The Department of Justice has already charged several perpetrators with that in mind, including in cases that involve charges with five-year mandatory minimum sentences,” Bondi’s statement said. “We will continue investigations that impose severe consequences on those involved in these attacks, including those operating behind the scenes to coordinate and fund these crimes.”
President Donald Trump has weighed in personally, alleging in a Tuesday interview on Fox News’s Ingraham Angle that those convicted of vandalizing Teslas were being “paid by people that are very highly political on the Left.”
Musk has also decried the violence, blaming it on “mental illness.”
“It’s really come as quite a shock to me that there’s this level of hatred and violence from the Left,” he said on Fox News’s Hannity on Tuesday night. “I always thought the Left, the Democrats, were supposed to be the party of empathy, the party of caring, yet they’re burning down cars, they’re firebombing dealerships, they’re firing bullets into dealerships.”
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“Tesla is a peaceful company; we’ve never done anything harmful. I’ve never done anything harmful; I’ve only done productive things. So, I think we just have a deranged … there’s some kind of mental illness thing going on here because this doesn’t make any sense,” he told host Sean Hannity.
Tesla stock has decreased by 40% over the last year. It peaked before Trump’s inauguration in January at over $428 per share but is sitting at $234 as of Thursday afternoon.
This a breaking news story and may be updated.
