Arsonist sets fire to Tesla charging stations: Police

Police in Massachusetts are investigating fires that appear to have been “intentionally set” that destroyed seven Tesla charging stations, police said.

The fires were first reported at approximately 1:10 a.m. on Monday morning when the Littleton Police Department in Massachusetts were dispatched to The Point Shopping Center due to reports of several fires at the Tesla charging stations there, according to a statement from the Littleton Police Department.

“Chief Matthew Pinard reports that the Littleton Police Department responded to and is investigating fires at a Tesla charging station at The Point Shopping Center that are believed to be suspicious in nature,” authorities said. “Responding officers observed that several Tesla charging stations were engulfed in flames and heavy, dark smoke.”

Police said that the Littleton Electric Light & Water Department was immediately contacted and requested to shut down power but that while waiting for the electric department to arrive, another charging station caught fire.

In total, seven charging stations sustained heavy fire-related damage, police said.

Once the fires were extinguished and the electric supply was cut off, officers launched a preliminary investigation and determined that the fires appear to have been deliberately set.

“Littleton Police and Fire Departments and the Massachusetts State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit attached to the State Fire Marshal’s Office are investigating and have determined that the fire appears to have been intentionally set,” police said.

No injuries were sustained in the fires, according to police, but authorities said that this case falls under the Arson Watch Reward Program, coordinated by the Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriting Association.

“The program offers rewards of up to $5,000 for information that solves, prevents, or detects arson crimes,” police said.

Just last week in a separate incident, a woman in Colorado was arrested after police caught her with explosives at a Tesla dealership, police said.

The 40-year-old suspect, Lucy Grace Nelson, was arrested on Feb. 25 after the Loveland Police Department in Colorado launched an "extensive investigation" on Jan. 29 following a series of vandalizations with incendiary devices at the Tesla Dealership in Loveland, Colorado, according to a statement from the police released last Wednesday.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, and his company have faced backlash since he has taken a central role in the White House as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency.

Over the weekend, demonstrators around the United States gathered at Tesla showrooms to protest Musk and his sweeping cuts of federal spending that has led to mass layoffs of federal workers in Washington, D.C. and beyond.

The investigation into the Littleton Tesla charging station fires is currently ongoing.