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Tesla faces vandalism and protests amid backlash against Elon Musk

Tesla faces vandalism and protests amid backlash against Elon Musk
 
New York (CNN) — Police across the United States are investigating a series of attacks on Tesla showrooms, charging stations and Tesla vehicles, as vitriol escalates against CEO Elon Musk.

There have also been peaceful protests at many Tesla locations, which involve demonstrators carrying signs and chanting “Elon Musk has got to go” in response to the slashing of federal jobs and budgets by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Though the protests have been peaceful, there have also been widespread reports of vandalism. While there have been no reports of injuries, the incidents pose a potentialfinancial problem for Tesla. The company faces declining sales for the first time due to increased competition and backlash over Musk’s contentious role in the Trump administration.

On March 3, seven charging stations in a mall outside of Boston were set on fire just after 1 a.m. local time.

On Thursday, police outside of Portland, Oregon, responded to gunshots fired at a Tesla showroom at about 1:45 a.m. local time. Investigators say at least seven shots were fired, damaging three cars and shattering windows. One bullet went through an office wall and into a computer monitor.

 

Shattered windows of a Tesla showroom that was shot up by an unknown vandal on March 6.
Shattered windows of a Tesla showroom that was shot up by an unknown vandal on March 6. Tigard Police Department/AP 
 

“While the motivation for this has not been confirmed, we are aware that other Tesla dealerships have been targeted across Oregon and the nation for political reasons,” police in Tigard, Oregon, said in a statement.

Lucy Grace Nelson of Colorado faces a federal charge of malicious destruction of property for allegedly vandalizing a Tesla dealership in Loveland, Colorado, in late January and February. Nelson allegedly spray-painted words including “Nazi” on vehicles and the windows of the store, and threw Molotov cocktails during one of the incidents, according to police. She was arrested near the store on February 24 with more Molotov cocktails inside her car. If convicted, Nelson could face up to 20 years in prison.

There have also been numerous complaints about damage to Tesla vehicles on social media. Police in Brookline, Massachusetts, posted a video on X of one individual defending his tagging of a Tesla vehicle as “free speech.” Musk, a self-described free speech absolutist who owns X and is Tesla’s largest shareholder, reposted the police post with the comment: “Damaging the property of others, aka vandalism, is not free speech!”

And when someone recently posted a photo of the word “Nazi” spray-painted on a Tesla charging station, the X account for Tesla Charging responded, “We will press charges for vandalism at superchargers.”

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment on the various attacks or the protests.

On Sunday, Musk posted on X: “Heartfelt thanks to everyone supporting Tesla, despite many attacks against our stores and offices.”

The attacks risk scaring away potential Tesla buyers who might not object to Musk’s politics but fear their car could be vandalized, said Gordon Johnson, founder of GLJ Research, who has long held a very bearish view of Tesla stock. He said no one wants to spend money on a Tesla only to have it vandalized.

Tesla just reported its first drop in annual sales in its history, and there are indications that sales could be down again this quarter. While overall electric vehicle sales in Europe surged by 34% in January, sales of Teslas plummeted 50%. Tesla’s sales fell 29% in China — the company’s second largest market after the United States — in the first two months of the year, according to Reuters.

And Tesla’s US sales dropped 16% between December and January, according to an estimate from Cox Automotive.

Weak sales have hurt the value of Tesla shares, which had climbed 91% after Election Day, peaking just before Christmas, as investors anticipated Musk and his electric car company would be big winners in Donald Trump’s second term.

Those gains, and more, have been wiped away since their recent highs. Shares fell about 14% in midday trading Monday and have now lost 10% since their closing price on Election Day.

Author: Chris Isidore, CNN

Source: CNN:::

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