Incendiary devices found at Austin Tesla dealership: police
The devices were “determined to be incendiary” and were taken into police custody without incident.
Austin Police on Monday morning discovered incendiary devices at a local Tesla dealership. This comes as Tesla dealerships, charging stations, and vehicles sold by the Elon Musk-owned company have been violently attacked in recent weeks, with some cases of arson.
The Austin Police Department’s Public Information Office said that at around 8:04 am local time, police responded to a “Found/Abandoned Hazardous call” at the Tesla dealership at 12845 N. US 183 HWY SVRD NB.
Suspicious devices were located when police arrived, which prompted authorities to contact Austin Police’s Bomb Squad to investigate. The devices were “determined to be incendiary” and were taken into police custody without incident.
“When officers arrived on scene, they located suspicious devices, and called the APD Bomb Squad to investigate. The devices, which were determined to be incendiary, were taken into police custody without incident. This is an open and ongoing investigation, and there is no further information available for release at this time,” police said.
This comes as various dealerships, charging stations, and Tesla vehicles have been targeted in recent weeks over Elon Musk’s work with the Trump administration to cut waste.
Attorney General Pam Bondi has pledged “severe consequences” for those involved in these acts of “domestic terrorism,” writing, “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. 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.”
At least three people are now facing federal charges for their roles in attacks on Tesla nationwide, and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. President Donald Trump has floated the idea of defendants found guilty of such attacks serving time in El Salvador’s prisons. “I look forward to watching the sick terrorist thugs get 20 year jail sentences for what they are doing to Elon Musk and Tesla. Perhaps they could serve them in the prisons of El Salvador, which have become so recently famous for such lovely conditions!”