Man, woman accused of vandalizing Teslas in DC turn themselves in to police
The suspects turned themselves in on Thursday. They've been identified as 49-year-old Justin Fisher and 50-year-old Emily Fisher from Northeast.
The duo is charged with several counts of defacing public or private property.
They're both accused of writing political hate speech on five different Teslas over the past month in Northeast D.C.
The phrases included "I like what Musk is doing," "ask me about my support of Nazis," "Let's do away with the administrative state! Buy a Tesla," "I love Musk and hate the Fed Govt" and "Go DOGE. I support Musk killing the Dept. of Education."
The Tesla owners whose cars were damaged told FOX 5 they were shocked and upset that people would vandalize their vehicles.
One woman said she's just happy that the suspects turned themselves in to police.
Vandalism against Teslas is the latest reported crime by owners and dealerships across the country after Tesla CEO Elon Musk was appointed head of the Department of Government Efficiency, cutting federal spending and laying off or firing thousands of federal workers.
Police say they're investigating the crimes as potentially being motivated by political affiliation, hate or bias.
FOX 5 tried to call the suspects and they were unable to reach them. However, their attorneys issued a joint statement, saying:
"Our clients are long time members of the DC community–neighbors, friends, volunteers, and professionals. They have voluntarily come forward and cooperated with MPD's investigation. Our understanding is that the allegations in this case involve non-violent and non-destructive conduct that resulted in no property damage. We trust that the government and the court system will treat our clients with fairness and proportionality. We look forward to ensuring their constitutional rights are upheld in accordance with the rule of law."
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