Authorities in Texas claim a Tesla dealership was the site of multiple planted explosive devices.
Austin police on Monday confirmed the recovery of multiple bombs at the car lot, marking the latest escalation in protests and vandalism targeting the company and CEO Elon Musk. Officers responded just after 8 a.m. Monday to a report of suspicious devices at the north Austin dealership. The department’s bomb squad determined the devices were dangerous and safely confiscated them.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has labeled the ongoing attacks “domestic terrorism,” pledging to prosecute offenders.
On Thursday, the Justice Department accused three individuals of using Molotov cocktails to set Tesla vehicles and charging stations on fire in Oregon, Colorado, and South Carolina. Earlier last week, an arsonist torched five Teslas at a Las Vegas service center, spray-painting “resist” in red at the scene. Critics of Musk have expressed growing frustration over his role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), the Trump administration’s initiative to trim the federal workforce.
Meanwhile, tensions flared in Florida, where police arrested Andrew Dutil, 44, for allegedly driving an SUV into protesters outside a Tesla dealership near the Florida Turnpike. Witnesses say Dutil entered the dealership, voiced support for Tesla, and then left.
The uproar has drawn congressional attention. House DOGE Subcommittee Chairwoman Marjorie Taylor Greene has urged the FBI and DOJ to investigate what she calls “organized” attacks on Musk, Tesla, and DOGE.
