A fire that broke out overnight at a Tesla dealership in Rome and completely burned down 17 vehicles has been deemed an act of terrorism by Elon Musk, the company’s wealthy founder, he stated on Monday.
Italy's special police unit Digos is leading an investigation looking into the possibility that anarchists set fire to the cars on the eastern outskirts of the Italian capital, a security source said.
Tesla cars have become targets for vandalism across several countries in response to Musk's right-wing activism.
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The technology magnate, who is also the owner of social media network X, became part of US President Donald Trump’s administration and has expressed backing for far-right groups across Europe.
Commenting in a post on X that made reference to the Rome fire, Musk used the single word "terrorism".
Drone images of the fire showed the burnt-out remains of cars lined up in a car park, with two rows of vehicles back-to-back and a third row some distance away.
The fire department stated in an announcement that the incident began around 4:30 am. Although the exhibition hall sustained partial damage, fortunately, no one was harmed.
Italy's Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who leads the right-wing League party, voiced his backing for Elon Musk on X as well. He shared, "There has been too much undeserved animosity directed at the Tesla car company."
"The season of hate and conflict must come to an end as soon as possible. My solidarity goes out to Elon Musk and to all the workers who have been threatened and attacked," Salvini said.
On Monday, multiple Swedish news sources reported that two Tesla showrooms along with some of their vehicles were damaged by vandals in Stockholm, the capital city, as well as Malmö, located on the coast.
Orange paint was sprayed on a Tesla store in Malmo, public broadcaster SVT reported, adding police had detained four people and were investigating the motive behind their actions.
"A patrol was alerted to a store on Boplatsgatan due to someone painting a building and cars with orange paint," the Malmo police said in an online statement, referring to a street near the city centre.
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