Elon Musk calls Tesla vandalism ‘deranged’ after Las Vegas vehicle fires – National

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says he’s shocked by the rising number of protests against his electric vehicle company.

During an interview with Fox News’ host Sean Hannity on Tuesday, the tech billionaire said “it’s really come as quite a shock to me that there is this level of  hatred and violence from the left.”

“I thought the left, you know, Democrats, were supposed to be the party of empathy, the party of caring. And yet they’re burning down cars. They’re firebombing dealerships. They’re firing bullets into dealerships. They’re just smashing up Teslas,” he said.

“Tesla is a peaceful company, we’ve never done anything harmful, I’ve never done anything harmful, I’ve only done productive things,” he continued, before calling the attacks “deranged,” and claiming there must be “some kind of mental illness going on.”

Musk also alluded to “larger forces at work.”

“Who’s funding it and who’s coordinating it?” he concluded.

There is no evidence pointing to widespread coordination, and there has been no confirmation of the political affiliations involved in the protests.

Musk’s remarks were in response to a fire at a Tesla collision centre in Las Vegas.

According to Las Vegas police, officers arrived at about 2:45 a.m. Tuesday to several burning vehicles and the word “resist” spray-painted on the front of the business.

At least five vehicles were damaged from the flames, two of which were fully engulfed.

Police say the suspect used Molotov cocktails and a firearm to conduct the attack, with evidence suggesting that at least three rounds of ammunition were fired into vehicles. An unexploded Molotov cocktail was also recovered from the crime scene.

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“This appears to be a targeted attack on a #Tesla facility. There is no ongoing threat, but out of an abundance of caution, we have increased patrols around Tesla locations,” Las Vegas police shared on X, along side footage of the fires.

The FBI is currently investigating and says it is not ruling out the possibility of terrorism.

Special Agent Spencer Evans told reporters that the incident “has some of the hallmarks” of a terrorist attack, but that it was too early in the investigation to be certain.

“One thing that I wanted to highlight and make crystal clear, especially in light of reporting that’s been ongoing around the country about similar incidents, targeted attacks at Tesla facilities, is that violent acts like this are unacceptable regardless of where they occur,” he said.

“To those who think that something like this is justifiable or potentially even admirable, we want to let you know that it’s a federal crime, we will come after you, we will find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law,” he continued, adding that anyone considering a similar act should think twice.

The Las Vegas incident is the latest in a series of Tesla attacks in the U.S and beyond its borders.

On Monday night, two Tesla Cybertrucks were burned at a dealership in Kansas City, Missouri.

Police said an officer spotted a Cybertruck on fire at the dealership shortly before midnight on March 17. The officer tried to use a fire extinguisher before having to call the Kansas City Fire Department to assist as the fire spread.

Last week, four vehicles were set on fire in Berlin, Germany. Similarly, on March 13, gunshots were fired at a Tesla dealership in Oregon for the second time in a week, causing extensive damage to cars and showroom windows, The Associated Press reported.

On March 8, footage captured during protests at a Manhattan Tesla showroom shows police removing a number of demonstrators from inside the premises, where glass doors had been shattered.

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Anti-Musk protesters arrested outside at Tesla showroom in NYC

Protestors also gathered outside the facility and could be heard chanting, “We need clean air, not another billionaire.”

Six people were arrested, five for disorderly conduct and one for resisting arrest, according to media reports.

In Toulouse, France, 12 Tesla vehicles were set on fire outside a dealership on March 5, destroying eight and severely damaging four. Authorities have since opened a criminal investigation.

The same day, seven Tesla charging stations at a mall in Littleton, Mass., about 60 km outside of Boston, were burned, causing heavy damage and sending up plumes of thick smoke.

— With files from Global News’ Michelle Butterfield