Andrew J. Hawkins is transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.
A Tesla Supercharger station was severely damaged in a possible explosion in Lacey, Washington. The local police department is investigating the incident, along with the FBI, which has been probing a number of acts of vandalism involving Tesla.
The Lacey Police Department said it received multiple calls of a “loud noise” at 1:34am PT, which could be a possible explosion. Officers arrived at a Target on Sleater Kinney Road to discover the damaged Tesla Supercharger station. Police said they are investigating the incident as “malicious mischief,” which describes the intentional damaging of someone’s property, and encourage anyone with information to reach out to the FBI.
Tesla’s Supercharger account on X said the company was “on site” with law enforcement, reviewing camera footage and coordinating with the local utility Puget Sound Energy. “Don’t mess with critical infrastructure,” the account added.
It’s the latest incident of Tesla-related vandalism, following CEO Elon Musk’s high-profile position in the Trump administration as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency. For weeks, Musk and DOGE have run roughshod through the federal government, cancelling humanitarian aid programs, slashing scientific research spending, and firing federal workers. His actions have led to a nationwide protest movement called Tesla Takedown, which aims to boycott the company’s vehicles and hurt its stock price. Last month, tens of thousands of people protested the company’s retail locations across the country.
Unrelatedly, a number of vandalism incidents targeting Tesla has cropped up. Tesla vehicles have been set on fire or defaced, showrooms have been shot up, and charging stations have been destroyed. President Donald Trump has called the incidents “domestic terrorism,” and the FBI has created a task force to investigate the attacks.
