The FBI’s announcement of a task force comes in response to a spate of firebombing and other acts of vandalism targeting Tesla vehicles and charging stations.
FBI Director Kash Patel has confirmed the launch of a multi-agency task force aimed at identifying and prosecuting those behind a recent wave of violent attacks targeting Tesla vehicles, facilities, and charging stations—acts he said equal “domestic terrorism.”
“The FBI has been investigating the increase in violent activity toward Tesla, and over the last few days, we have taken additional steps to crack down and coordinate our response,” Patel
wrote on March 24 on the social media platform X. “This is domestic terrorism. Those responsible will be pursued, caught, and brought to justice.”
Patel shared a
post from New York Post reporter Diana Glebova, who first reported the formation of the FBI’s 10-person Tesla task force. The unit reportedly includes special agents and analysts from several federal agencies, including the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division—specifically its Domestic Terrorism Operations Section and Weapons of Mass Destruction Directorate—as well as personnel from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
An FBI spokesperson confirmed the agency’s intent in an emailed statement to The Epoch Times.
“Director Patel has been unequivocally clear: The FBI will be relentless in its mission to protect the American people,“ the spokesperson said. ”Acts of violence, vandalism, and domestic terrorism—like the recent Tesla attacks—will be pursued with the full force of the law.”
The federal response follows a wave of attacks on Tesla’s infrastructure, including vandalism, gunfire, and arson. In a recent
incident, a Tesla service center in Las Vegas was targeted by a gunman who riddled several vehicles with bullets, set others ablaze, and spray-painted the word “RESIST” across the building.
Following the Las Vegas attack, FBI Special Agent in Charge Spencer Evans told reporters the bureau is investigating similar incidents in at least nine states.
“There have been reports of attacks in multiple states, ranging from everything from graffiti and vandalism to actual targeted attacks where people are using firearms, firebombing,” Evans said, adding that it’s too early to determine whether the events are part of a coordinated campaign.
In a separate
post on X, the FBI urged Americans to remain vigilant around Tesla facilities due to nationwide incidents involving “arson, gunfire, and vandalism” against the company’s vehicles and properties.
While the FBI has not officially commented on Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s political role, the agency acknowledged in a
bulletin that some attacks appear linked to “grievances against those the perpetrators perceive to be racists, fascists, or political opponents,” based on graffiti found at multiple crime scenes.
“These criminal actions appear to have been conducted by lone offenders, and all known incidents occurred at night,” the bulletin stated. “Individuals require little planning to use rudimentary tactics, such as improvised incendiary devices and firearms, and may perceive these attacks as victimless property crimes.”
Attorney General Pam Bondi echoed Patel’s statement and
described the attacks as “nothing short of domestic terrorism.” She
announced charges against three individuals accused of using Molotov cocktails to ignite Tesla cars and charging stations, promising “severe consequences” for those involved.
President Donald Trump has also weighed in,
calling the perpetrators “sick terrorist thugs” and proposing harsh sentences—suggesting they serve 20-year prison terms, potentially in a facility the United States recently leased in El Salvador to house deported foreign gang members.
Tesla has become an increasingly political flashpoint, largely due to Musk’s role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), a Trump administration initiative focused on slashing wasteful federal spending amid record national debt. Musk has defended DOGE’s work, while critics—primarily Democrats—accuse the agency of gutting essential government services.
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), a vocal critic of the cost-cutting initiative, recently
ditched his Tesla in favor of a Chevy Tahoe to protest Musk’s alignment with DOGE. He accused Musk of “dismantling our government and hurting people.”
Republicans have dismissed such claims as fear-mongering, and Trump has repeatedly insisted that programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid will remain untouched.
According to DOGE
estimates, its efforts have already identified over $115 billion in potential savings through measures such as canceling government contracts, freezing foreign aid, and proposing cuts to more than 100,000 federal jobs.
In response to the Las Vegas incident, Musk
called the attack “insane and deeply wrong.”
“Tesla just makes electric cars and has done nothing to deserve these evil attacks,” he wrote.
