A fire at a Tesla dealership near Rome on Monday destroyed more than a dozen vehicles, with investigators considering the possibility of arson.
Firefighters arrived at the scene in the Torre Angela area at around 4:30 a.m. and found 16 Teslas burned. The building was also partially damaged, according to the Associated Press.
While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, authorities haven’t ruled out arson. Thankfully, no one was hurt.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been facing criticism both in the U.S. and Europe for his actions during the Trump administration. This includes supporting cuts to federal programs and backing far-right leaders in Europe, like Italy’s. As a result, Tesla has seen increasing acts of vandalism, both in the U.S. and overseas.
In the last month, multiple Teslas were set on fire at a dealership in Las Vegas and dozens more were targeted in France, part of an “anti-capitalist” effort against the company. Musk recently spoke about these attacks at a town hall in Wisconsin, calling the incidents “insane” and blaming what he called “violence and hatred” from the left.
Musk, who has boasted about firing thousands of federal workers through DOGE, lamented the “hatred” directed at him, claiming that “Democrats are supposed to be the party of empathy.”
“They’re burning Teslas and shooting up dealerships and calling for the death of the president and me. I’m like, guys, you know this is insane, like they’re totally gone psycho,” Musk said, adding, “That’s somebody else’s car. Leave it alone.”
Watch the clip below:
Elon Musk while speaking to Green Bay voters ahead of a Wisconsin Supreme Court election accused the Democrats of going "totally psycho" for burning down Tesla cars. pic.twitter.com/C0Ce5XQGg9
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) March 31, 2025
