CBS News reported that Italian police said more than 10 Tesla cars were destroyed in a fire at a dealership in the suburbs of Rome in the early morning of March 31 (local time).
A representative of Tesla Italy said that the scene videos recorded by the vehicle's surveillance camera system will be automatically sent to local police for investigation.
Last week, AFP also recorded another fire and explosion incident involving Tesla in France. St-Chamond town police, in the Loire region of central France, said 12 Tesla charging stations were targeted in a sabotage attack at a supermarket's parking lot. The scene showed the words "Anti- Tesla Campaign - Born to Destroy", written with white spray paint on the ground.
There were no human casualties, but two charging stations worth tens of thousands of USD were completely damaged.
According to AFP, this is the first public action targeting Elon Musk's business activities in Loire. Although several days have passed, local police have yet to release any clues and no suspects have been arrested.
In France, dozens of Tesla vehicles were burned in the city of Toulouse earlier this month.
Tesla is also facing a series of violent attacks in the US. Justice Minister Pam Bondi called this an act of domestic terrorism and pledged severe punishment for those involved, including those behind the coordinations and financing of the attacks.
Since January 2025, cases targeting Tesla vehicles have occurred in at least nine states, according to an intelligence source from the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI collected by CBS News. Sources said the incidents involved arson, firing, sabotage and slashing.
On March 29, hundreds of protests gathered outside Tesla dealers across the US and some European cities. All 277 Tesla showrooms and service centers were surrounded. The protest's aim was said to exacerbate the company's recent sales decline.
In the first two months of 2025, Tesla's sales in Europe fell by 49% while electric vehicle sales in general continued to grow.
In an interview on March 30, Musk admitted that his work at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is reducing Tesla's stock price, calling it a "very expensive job".
According to CBS News, Musk's role at DOGE has sparked many protests from those opposing the agency's operations, including access to millions of Americans' sensitive data and the widespread closure of government agencies as he looks to cut spending.
About a third of Musks estimated $3030 billion in assets are in Tesla shares. Previously, Tesla shares hit a record high of $479 on December 17 after Mr. Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. However, Tesla shares have now fallen to around $200.
