Vandal strikes Cybertruck, Tesla owner hits back
Kerri Pouliot, the owner of the damaged Tesla, posted the clip to X saying "our Tesla cyber truck was vandalized this weekend in NH. While staying at our hotel, our vehicle was keyed within an hour of arriving."
In an interview, Pouliot told Fox News Digital that she and her husband "were told at the time of the incident that they would be getting a warrant" for the male suspect's arrest.
Kash Patel Sharpens Warning Message For Tesla 'Domestic Terrorism' Perpetrators Ahead Of 'Day Of Action'
Footage obtained by Fox News Digital shows the male suspect walking along the right side of the vehicle, pulling what appeared to be a key from his pocket and dragging it along the side of the Cybertruck.
Pouliot recorded a video when police arrived at the scene, and an officer can be heard asking, "Do you want to talk about what happened here?"
Read On The Fox News App
The accused vandal snapped back, "No, I don't know what happened."
Police then told the man that they "had him on video."
"I don't know what happened," the man repeated.
Carroll Police Chief Tadd Bailey told the New Hampshire Union Leader that "the incident is under investigation by us and the Coos County Attorney's Office."
Spokespersons for the Carroll Police Department and the Coos County Attorney's Office did not respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Fox Business - Tesla Stock Price
Undeterred by the targeted thrashing of the Tesla, Pouliot told Fox News Digital that she and her husband have "no intentions of ever selling our truck."
The dramatic uptick in the destruction of the electric-powered vehicles has not gone unnoticed by the Trump Administration, leading FBI Director Kash Patel to launch a task force to combat the rise in target criminal attacks on Elon Musk's car company.
On Monday, FBI Spokesperson Ben Williamson told Fox News Digital, "This Task Force is just the latest move in coordinating our efforts to ensure those who violently attack Tesla will be pursued and brought to justice."
Fbi Launches Task Force To Crack Down On Violent Tesla Attacks, Mitigate Threats
Last week, President Donald Trump weighed in on the widespread vandalism of the vehicles, saying "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!"
Attacks on the vehicles and aggressive rhetoric toward billionaire Tesla founder and DOGE head Elon Musk have not been unprompted. Democrat Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, said on a call last week that Musk should be "taken down," to which Attorney General Pam Bondi cautioned her to "tread very carefully."
The Texas congresswoman quickly clarified her statement, saying, "Everything that I am promoting is nonviolent."
Far-left Democrat Slammed For 'Unhinged' Threat Against Prominent Gop Senator: 'Inciting Violence'
Bondi further addressed the rhetoric by telling Fox News host Sean Hannity, "After she said that about Elon, [Crockett] said, 'Well, I didn't mean violence,' but however, your words have consequences. And what happened after she said that about Elon Musk? She's a Texan in her own home state after she said that this morning, three explosive devices were found in Austin, Texas. So she needs to unequivocally denounce the violence."
Despite warnings from the attorney general, Crockett has doubled down on her stance, calling for a "Global Day of Action" to hit back at the Musk-founded company on March 29.
"All I want to see happen on my birthday is for Elon to be taken down," Crockett said.
Omni Mountain Resort & Spa could not be reached for comment.
Fox News Digital's Max Bacall contributed to this report.Original article source: Vandal strikes Cybertruck, Tesla owner hits back
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Business Insider
27 minutes ago
- Business Insider
Tesla teases a new Model Y L variant is 'coming soon' in a video posted to Chinese social media
A new Tesla variant is coming around the corner. On Monday, Tesla posted a video of the upcoming Model Y L to its account on Weibo, a Chinese social media platform. Translated from Chinese, the post said that the vehicle was "coming soon." The video shows three rows of seats, the back two of which fold forward. The middle row of the vehicle features two stand-alone "captain chairs," which also appear to have new powered armrests that rise up. While the captain chairs in the Model X only tilt forward, these chairs appear to fold all the way down for more storage space. The video also shows a black headliner, the material on the vehicle's ceiling, and a new logo stamped on the back, with two small accents added to the traditional Model Y badge. News of Tesla's plans for a six-seat rendition of its Model Y first broke in 2024, when sources told Reuters that the vehicle would launch the following year in China. In July, Tesla registered plans for the Model Y L with a wheelbase of 3,040 mm, according to a filing viewed by the news outlet. The filing also indicated that the Model Y L would be almost 200 mm longer than the Model Y. The Model Y is the most popular SUV in China. China is Tesla's second-largest market, though the company's sales have been sagging in the region amid fierce competition from BYD, Xiaomi, and Xpeng. Tesla sold 129,000 vehicles in China in the second quarter of 2025, down nearly 12% year-over-year. BYD sold 1.76 million battery electric cars in 2024. Tesla sold 1.79 million cars that same year, edging out its Chinese competitor. The Chinese smartphone and electric vehicle company Xiaomi recently launched its own SUV, underpricing Tesla. Chinese EV startup Xpeng also released a Model Y competitor below the Model Y sticker price. It is not yet clear whether Tesla plans to launch the Model Y L in the United States. The vehicle's price and launch date have yet to be announced.
New York Times
27 minutes ago
- New York Times
Did you Recently Buy a Used E.V.? We Want to Hear from You.
Sales of used electric vehicles are growing fast as their prices have fallen in recent months. Many Americans have been reluctant to buy electric cars because new models are a lot more expensive than comparable gasoline vehicles. But that is often not the case with pre-owned cars. Some used Teslas, for example, sell for less than the average used car, according to Cox Automotive, a research and consulting firm. I cover the auto industry for The New York Times and focus on electric vehicles. I am interested in writing about why people are buying electric cars, particularly used ones. If you've recently purchased a used electric car or truck, I would like to hear your story. We may use your contact information to follow up with you. If we publish your submission, we will not include your name without first contacting you and obtaining your permission.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Trump seizes control of Washington DC police and deploys national guard
Donald Trump has ordered the national guard to Washington DC and seized control of the city's police force, describing a 'lawless' city in ways that are sharply at odds with official crime statistics. The US president's move was swiftly condemned as a 'disgusting, dangerous and derogatory' assault on the political independence of a racially diverse city. The federal takeover is expected to be in effect for 30 days, the White House confirmed to the Guardian. Speaking at a White House press conference on Monday, Trump said he was taking 'a historic action to rescue our nation's capital from crime, bloodshed, bedlam, and squalor and worse. This is liberation day in DC and we're going to take our capital back.' He described Washington DC as 'one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world', claiming its murder rate is higher than Bogotá or Mexico City, even though violent crime is at a 30-year low. The defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, who was among officials joining Trump on the podium, said 800 national guard troops would take to the streets of Washington over the coming week. 'They will be strong, they will be tough and they will stand with their law enforcement partners,' he said. Trump, who lost the presidential election in DC to Democrat Kamala Harris by 86 percentage points, added that he may send in the military 'if needed'. By invoking section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act, the president is federalising DC's Metropolitan police department for the first time in its history. He said he was declaring a public safety emergency and putting the police under the control of the attorney general, Pam Bondi. Trump vowed to allow police to 'do whatever the hell they want' in the face of provocations. 'That's the only language they [alleged criminals] understand. They like to spit in the face of the police. You spit, and we hit, and they get hit real hard.' Section 740 requires the mayor, Muriel Bowser, to provide 'such services of the Metropolitan Police force as the President may deem necessary and appropriate', when the president determines that there are 'special conditions' requiring it. The president can only exercise such control under the act for 30 days without Congress passing a law extending it. After the former General Services Administration staffer Edward Coristine – a 19-year-old on the so-called 'department of government efficiency' team nicknamed 'Big Balls' – appeared to have been attacked by a group of young people last week near his car, Trump began discussing a return to federal control of the city and the use of national guard to quell street crime. Washington DC was hit hard by the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic, recording more homicides in 2023 than in any year since 1997. At that time it was among the top five homicide rates in major population centres – those with more than a million residents – behind only Memphis in Tennessee, St Louis in Missouri and Baltimore in Maryland, according to the non-profit USAFacts. But violent crime in Washington DC has fallen sharply since 2023, shaking off the pandemic increases to reach a 30-year low on the day Trump took office, and has fallen 26% further this year according to weekly reports from the Metropolitan police department. The change in crime rates is consistent with dramatic decreases in violence in large cities across the country. The capital is much safer than it used to be. In 1991 it was branded the murder capital of the US with the killing of 482 people. By last year the total number of homicides had fallen to 187. This year the rate is on course to be lower. Nonetheless, Trump ordered a range of federal law enforcement agencies to deploy on to DC streets over the weekend in a surge. About 450 officers from the United States Capitol police, the Federal Protective Service, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other agencies were present into the city's quadrants over the weekend. At the press conference on Monday morning, Trump painted a nightmarish portrait of a city 'overtaken by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals, roving mobs of wild youth, drugged out maniacs and homeless people'. The US attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, a former Fox News host only confirmed to her role on 2 August, said she saw 'too much violent crime being committed by young punks who think that they can get together in gangs and crews and beat the hell out of you or anyone else'. Pirro expressed her frustration with what she views as excessive leniency when it comes to the way juveniles are prosecuted. 'I can't arrest them. I can't prosecute them,' she said. 'They go to family court, and they get to do yoga and arts and crafts. Enough, it changes today.' Pirro called for changes to the law to allow a wider range of juvenile cases to be heard in adult court. Again taking to social media on Sunday, Trump demanded that unhoused residents of the capital leave, posting images of encampments ostensibly taken from his motorcade. 'The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform on Sunday morning, shortly after being driven from the White House to his golf club in Virginia. 'We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital.' Homelessness rates in the nation's capital have also been falling, with the most recent point-in-time count showing a decrease from 2024. Related: Trump orders homeless he passed en route to golf course to leave Washington DC Monday's announcement by Trump, who pardoned his supporters who attacked the US Capitol in Washington on 6 January 2021, was criticised by Democrats and civil rights leaders. Eleanor Holmes Norton, a non-voting delegate representing DC in the House of Representatives, said the decision 'is an historic assault on DC home rule, is a counterproductive, escalatory seizure of DC's resources to use for purposes not supported by DC residents, and is more evidence of the urgent need to pass my DC statehood bill'. Ken Martin, the chair of the Democratic National Committee, said: 'Trump is once again playing political games using service members and federal law enforcement officials. Trump doesn't give a damn about keeping DC residents safe. 'When rioters violently stormed the Capitol and there were repeated requests for the national guard, Trump failed to act. To add insult to injury, he released from jail those 1,500 violent insurrectionists who assaulted police officers and broke local and federal law.' Al Sharpton, the founder and president of the National Action Network, suggested that the intervention was motivated by a desire to distract from criticisms over the administration's handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files. 'Donald Trump was inspired to take this disgusting, dangerous, and derogatory action solely out of self interest,' he said. 'Let's call the inspiration for this assault on a majority Black city for what it is: another bid to distract his angry, frustrated base over his administration's handling of the Epstein files.' Later Muriel Bowser, the mayor of DC, who has pursued a non-confrontational relationship with Trump, described the intervention as 'unsettling and unprecedented' but declined to criticise the president directly. 'I've said before, and I'll repeat, that I believe that the president's view of DC is shaped by his Covid-era experience during his first term,' she told reporters. 'It is true that those were more challenging times related to some issues. It is also true that we experienced a crime spike post-Covid but we worked quickly to put laws in place and tactics that got violent offenders off our streets, and gave our police officers more tools.' Bowser said her office plans to follow the law and cooperate with the federal government, though 'I don't want to minimise the intrusion on our autonomy'. She has requested a meeting with Bondi, who will temporarily oversee the Metropolitan police department. Flanked by Pamela Smith, the DC police chief, and other city officials, Bowser added: 'While this action today is unsettling and unprecedented, I can't say that, given some of the rhetoric of the past, we're totally surprised. I can say to DC residents that we will continue to operate our government in a way that makes you proud.' Asked about Trump's hint that he could deploy the US military if required, the mayor replied: 'I think I speak for all Americans. We don't believe it is legal to use the American military against American citizens on American soil. I am not a lawyer, but I think that is a fairly widely held fact.' Meanwhile Hakeem Jeffries, the Democratic minority leader in the House, described Trump as a 'wannabe king' and argued his plan to 'unleash the national guard on the city's youth and homeless population has no basis in law and will put the safety of the people of our nation's capital in danger'. He added: 'We stand with the residents of the District of Columbia and reject this unjustified power grab as illegitimate.'Shrai Popat contributed reporting • This article was amended on 12 August 2025. Jeanine Pirro is the White House-appointed US attorney for the District of Columbia, not the elected 'DC attorney general' as an earlier version said. Solve the daily Crossword
